


villager b

by whitemiists



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: F/M, in which yachi is much too shippable, the rest of karasuno shows their faces occasionally too
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-15
Updated: 2015-02-15
Packaged: 2018-03-13 04:04:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 25,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3367109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whitemiists/pseuds/whitemiists
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              
<p></p><blockquote>
  <p>A collection of Yachi x first-years stories.</p>
</blockquote><p>She had never thought a boy to be beautiful before, but that’s exactly what he was when he soared.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. HinaYachi: Unicorns And Rainbows

**Author's Note:**

> cross-posted from tumblr, for another request by [demfraymotifs](http://demfraymotifs.tumblr.com/) ^^
> 
> these are fics of yachi paired with the various first-years on the team, because i, um, kind of ship her all around. i'll post all future yachi ship fics here as well.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A shy librarian and a boy who’d never even stepped foot in a library before didn’t exactly seem like the perfect match, but Yachi found her gaze drawn to him anyway.

**Hinata x Yachi**

.

If Yachi had even a bit more of a backbone, she might have been able to tell those rowdy boys in the corner to please keep it quiet while they were in the library. But the very idea of her having a spine at all was a laughable notion, so all she did was bury her face in her book, occasionally peeking over the cover in a fidgety mess and following the mop of shockingly orange hair that had become a fixed sight in her library ever since midterm week had rolled around.

The boy was never alone when he visited; he always had a group of friends in tow, most of whom acted as his tutors for his various subjects. He needed a lot of help with school work, it seemed, and from the short while she had been observing him, Yachi could tell it was obviously because he had a problem sitting still for more than ten minutes at a time.

Sometimes they were a quiet, respectable bunch. Yachi was quite fond of the fair-haired Engineering major who helped him with Calculus — Sugawara was a regular visitor to the library even  _without_  his orange-haired junior as company — and any time it was Sawamura’s turn to quiz him in History, she could count on him to keep the noise level to a minimum. 

But she supposed having a personality so vibrant attracted others who were more similar rather than different, because normally when the boy visited it was with people who had probably never spoken in whispers their whole life. Like today.

Yachi cringed when his bald companion slammed his fist on the table, grinning widely as he stood up off his chair and rested his foot against the table.

"Your Tanaka-senpai is a genius!" he all but bellowed, throwing his head back and laughing loudly.

"Woooooow!" the orange-haired lad exclaimed. With stars in his eyes, he gaped from his textbook to his senpai, obviously dazzled by a display of intelligence. He began fidgeting in his seat, leaning forward eagerly. "Teach me! Teach me!"

Tanaka rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Uhhh… Well, Sugawara-san hasn’t taught me how to do the rest yet…”

Beside him, a boy the size of a grade-schooler (though Yachi could hardly talk) with a single blond streak in his hair erupted into laughter at the reply, and the mystery boy she had been watching lately followed suit, looking like he didn’t quite understand exactly  _why_  they were laughing but liked having an excuse to laugh anyway.

As their cackling echoed through the otherwise silent library, Yachi watched as a girl at another table huffed in annoyance, shot the boys a sly, irritated glare, and marched out with her book in hand, looking for some peace.

She knew this was where she should step in. She wouldn’t even need to be hostile; politely suggesting that they keep the noise level down would probably work perfectly, because Yachi could tell that the group of boys meant well, and that they simply could not tell they were being a little too noisy. They were probably always this rambunctious.

But she couldn’t do it. The thought of interrupting them with her awkward stuttering made her face flame, and it didn’t help that she had never been very good at talking to boys in general. The fact that her knees had begun shaking just at the idea of speaking two words to them was testament enough to how badly the interaction was sure to go.

She kept her butt parked in her chair, a safe distance from their corner with a few tables and her counter in between. Her book was just  _so fascinating_  — and upside down.

.

He was alone today.

Yachi was rather taken aback by the observation. She couldn’t remember ever seeing him alone at all. Even if he didn’t come with tutors, he at least had one tag-along in the form of a tall boy with a fringe and the most frightening glare she had ever seen. Seeing those two boys together had always felt like looking at the sun versus a volcano just waiting to erupt; both were intense and passionate to the point that it burned, but whereas one was warm and welcoming, the other made people keep their distance. She had always wondered how the two ever came to be friends.

But his study buddy was nowhere to be found. He sat at his usual table alone, just staring at the textbook open in front of him.

For a split, naive second, Yachi indulged in the fantasy that he had fallen in love with books after spending so much time in the library, and she even daydreamed about the idea of comparing their favorite books, authors, philosophies, everything.

Then she remembered just  _who_  he was, and she was brought back to reality forcefully enough to see that he had a dead sort of look in his eyes as he ran them aimlessly over his book, looking like he couldn’t absorb any of the words at all.

His forehead abruptly slammed against the table.  _"Ugghhhhhh,"_  she heard him moan to himself, and she couldn’t help but giggle. Luckily he didn’t hear her.

Throughout the afternoon, her eyes constantly strayed to him as she worked. She would look at him through the spaces in the shelves as she stacked books, or she would catch a glimpse of orange in the corner of her vision as she checked out a book at the counter. Each time he looked bored and frustrated and fidgety all at the same time, and Yachi really had to fight to keep a grin from erupting across her lips.

By the time mid-afternoon rolled around, he had surprisingly still not left, but he also obviously had not made any sort of progress with his studying. She hadn’t seen him flip the page in the past half hour, but she  _had_  seen the doodles littering his notebook the one time she had walked behind him.

At least he was being quiet today, which made Yachi’s job a hundred times easier. With no need to fret over her lack of nerve when it came to piping students down, she cracked open a book and actually enjoyed some peace as she read while the library went through a lull period.

That was until she glanced up from her book for a quick second — a force of habit from peeking at the boy so often — and found her orange-haired stranger staring at her, not even half an inch from the counter.

_"Waaah!"_

Surprised by his sudden appearance, Yachi flailed, the book falling onto the counter with a loud  _thump_ , and it was just her luck that she was sitting on one of those chairs with wheels that did not take well to her suddenly vaulting herself from the desk. The chair jerked, and then she was falling backwards.

Their eyes widened simultaneously, but while all Yachi could do was gape in horror, just waiting for the inevitable impact, the boy was quicker to react. In a show of shockingly fast reflexes that almost left her feeling dizzy, he threw himself half across the counter, reaching for her hands with his own. He grabbed her fingers by the tips and yanked her back up, righting her kiltered chair and her along with it.

A bright smile erupted across his face once he was sure she was going to be okay.

"That was close!" he exclaimed cheerfully, breaking the rare silence in the library.

"C-C-Can…" Yachi drew in a shaky breath, trying to steady her hammering heart, and tried again. "Can I help you?"

He bobbed his head. “Yeah, you can! I’m looking for a book on Biology.”

"Umm…" She twisted her fingers together, chewing thoughtfully on her bottom lip. "Could you be more specific?"

"Something that’ll dumb it down for me," he elaborated, sheepishly scratching the back of his head. "See, I’m not all that great at this memorization stuff, and all these terms get so confusing. Meiosis and mitosis and DNA and RNA and mRNA — they all get jumbled up in my head! I’ve been trying to study myself but I just can’t make sense of it! I have a test next week and Sugawara-san promised he’d quiz me, except his mother fell sick and he went home to take care of her. And Daichi-san has two exams this week to worry about himself so I didn’t want to bother him. And Tanaka-senpai and Nishinoya-senpai are just as bad at memorization as me. And Kenma said tutoring is too much of a bother. And Kageyama…"

Yachi’s head was swirling at these sudden onslaught of names. She had never been particularly good at remembering them, and it didn’t help that he was prattling them off as if she knew his friends like they were her own.

"Um!" she interrupted him, and he broke off his rant about how someone named Kageyama was just as stupid as he was, so he really shouldn’t act so high and mighty all the time. She twiddled her fingers again. "So you need an introductory book on Biology?"

He eagerly nodded, grinning. “Yeah! Yeah!”

"Then… here."

He was visibly surprised when she picked up her own book, the one she had almost dropped when she fell over, and handed it to him. Even she was rather dumbfounded by the coincidence, but she didn’t let it show on her face.

His eyes immediately lit up, and he gaped at the book and then at her, his mouth rounding out. “Oooooooh! Why do you have this? Are you in my class?!”

"N-No, I took Biology last semester. I just…" She shyly twirled a lock of her hair around one finger, unable to make direct eye contact with the stars in his gaze. "I just really like it."

"Wow! Are you one of those amazing super geniuses who’re good at everything?!" he exclaimed, the stars in his eyes upgrading into full-on constellations. "I can’t imagine reading about Biology for fun."

"N-No!" she refuted quickly, shaking her hands in front of her chest. It embarrased her to be looked at with that impressed look of awe. "I’m just normal at school. There are just some subjects I like more than others, so…"

He nodded along, hanging on to her every word, and Yachi felt her face combust. For a boy who couldn’t sit still for long, he sure was good at giving his attention to people in a conversation; his eyes were on her and only her, and he was listening intently, just waiting for her next words. She wasn’t used to someone paying so much attention to her, and the intensity of it left her flustered.

"S-So c-can I have your card?" she asked in a rush, blindly reaching for the computer so she would have an excuse not to meet his eyes. "I can check that out for you."

He gazed down at the book in his hands, turning it over to glance at the back cover, and the smile that was usually on his face slowly dipped into a slight frown.

"But… weren’t  _you_  reading this?” he asked her.

She blinked. “Y-Yes?”

Screwing his eyes shut, he held out the book to her. “Then I can’t take this!”

"Eh?" Yachi actually jumped back, rather stunned by his way of thinking. She began flailing her arms, her voice going shrill as she insisted, "No, no, it’s fine! Take it!" When he frowned more deeply, looking like he would refuse again, she added, "I can just read it after you’re done."

"Oh." He seemed to consider that, turning the book over in his hands again, before a smile broke out across his face once more. "Okay then!"

She almost got whiplash from his one-eighty degree change in emotions as he cheerfully pulled his student card out of his pocket and handed it to her, still grinning from ear to ear. She accepted it with shaky hands, and before running it under the scanner, she gave it a quick once-over.

_Hinata Shouyo._

_So that’s his name,_  she thought to herself, scanning first the card and then the book. How curious that she was only just learning it when he had recently been such a regular in her library.

"Here you go, Hinata-kun." She passed him back his items.

"Just Hinata is fine," he proclaimed brightly as he accepted them. "Or even Shouyo."

Her eyes widened, and she felt heat on her cheeks again. “I-I-I couldn’t!”

"I’m not big on honorifics or anything like that," he insisted, pocketing his card. "And I’ll just call you Yachi!"

She started, wondering how he knew her name, until she remembered that the name tag pinned to her shirt displayed it for all to see:  _Yachi Hitoka._  Her name sounded strangely perfect on his tongue; she couldn’t imagine someone as sunny as him referring to her with something stuffy like ‘Yachi-san.’

"Th-Then…" She fidgeted where she stood, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, and clutched the ends of her shirt with sweaty palms. She had never called a boy without an honorific before. "…Hinata."

"Yeah!" he cheered encouragingly, smiling so widely that his eyes had narrowed into slits.

When the world did not explode at her impropriety, Yachi relaxed. She loosened up enough to not stammer when she informed him, “The book is due back in two weeks. There’s a fee for every day it’s late.”

He nodded seriously, sending her a mock salute. “Got it.”

Clutching the book to his heart carefully, he finally turned and made to march back to his table, where his notes and textbook were still littered all across the surface, except he paused when Yachi found her courage, balled up her fists, and called after him.

"Hinata?"

He swung back instantly, cocking his head to the side. “Hm?”

"Um… Um…" After floundering for a moment, she took in a deep breath and managed to look him in the eyes. A slight smile touched her lips. "Thank you for saving me earlier. A-And good luck on your exam."

There was only a beat of silence before yet another grin overtook Hinata’s face, except this time it was much,  _much_  sunnier than before.

"It was no problem, Yachi. And thanks — I’ll do my best!"

.

A few days after their first meeting, Yachi was scurrying off to her class when she found her path blocked by Hinata. The surprise of seeing him outside the library for the first time was greater than the shock of him suddenly hopping in front of her, so abruptly and so closely that she almost ran right into him.

"Hey, Yachi," he beamed.

"H-Hinata!" she stammered, just barely resisting the urge to clutch her racing heart.

"I have your book," he exclaimed, already slinging off his backpack and unzipping the back pocket. She watched, taken aback, as he pulled out the science book she had checked out for him days prior.

Tugging at a lock of her hair, she stared at her feet and murmured timidly, “You know, we’d really rather prefer you returned it to the library directly…” By the end of her sentence she had trailed off because she really didn’t have it in her heart to scold Hinata for anything, especially when he was smiling at her in such a way.

But Hinata didn’t seem put out by her words. In fact, he beamed even more brightly, his face positively glowing as he shoved the book into her hands.

"I’m not  _returning_  it,” he replied cheerfully. “I’m loaning it to you, since I’m done with it and you wanted to read it.”

"Eh?" She accepted the book he had pressed into her hands, holding it against her chest, but was quite confused. "Couldn’t you have just given it to me at the library?"

He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. “I didn’t know when you would be there again. And I wanted to get it to you quick — because you gave it to me when you really wanted it, so the least I could do was return it as fast as possible, right?”

 _"Oh…"_  Yachi was so touched by his words, and she held on to the book even more tightly, allowing herself a small smile. Their paths  _never_  crossed outside the library, so he must have especially tracked her down.

"By the way," he added, his grin so wide that it showed his teeth and his nose scrunched up, "your bookmark is so cute!"

As quickly as her heart had soared, it stopped beating altogether. “What?”

"My little sister loved it!" he went on, oblivious to her inner turmoil. "She wanted to keep it for herself, except I told her it wasn’t mine to give. But she still kept stealing it! So finally I promised her I would buy her one of her own, so your bookmark is safe! But now she keeps asking…"

Yachi wasn’t really listening anymore. She was too busy asking herself if she had  _really_  let someone — and Hinata of all people — see her bright pink bookmark with the unicorns and rainbows plastered across the front. The little pink piece of plastic sticking out at the top of the book was her answer. She’d bought it back in middle school, but with how many books she was constantly reading, she never threw any of her bookmarks out. But now she’d gone and accidentally lent it out to someone. Oh, how embarrassing!

"…so you’ll take me, won’t you?" Hinata finished, watching her expectantly.

"…Sure," she agreed blankly, not sure what she’d gotten herself into since she had mostly zoned him out, too lost in her own shame.

 _"Really?"_  Hopping where he stood, Hinata suddenly took one of her hands into his own, shaking it so vigorously that her whole body wiggled. “Yay! Thank you! I’m counting on you to help me pick one my sister will like, ‘kay?”

With a cheery wave in her direction, he bounded off ahead of her, probably late for his next class.

She stood there aimlessly for a while, until she realized with a start that she was already ten minutes late for her own lesson.

.

Sometimes Yachi really envied her fellow librarian. Tsukishima, though he sometimes had a bit of a nasty personality, was so much better at voicing his annoyance, whereas Yachi could still only peek discreetly over the cover of her book.

The moment Hinata had walked into the library that afternoon, his three rowdy friends in tow, Tsukishima’s face had soured and he made no effort to hide it. In fact, his glare had only worsened as their noise level continued to rise.

Yachi wished she could be that way. Of course, she didn’t want to snap crabbily at people or glower at their backs. But she wished she had the courage to voice her thoughts like he did. Despite the brief conversations she and Hinata had already shared, not to mention their visit to her favorite bookstore to pick out a cute bookmark for his little sister together, she still could not manage to ask him to bring the volume down a notch.

Eventually, Tsukishima clicked his tongue in irritation, kicked himself off the chair beside her, and strutted over to them.

"Oi, you lot," he snapped. "Keep it down. This is a  _library.”_

The four boys at the table glanced at each other in surprise. Hinata’s study buddy — Kageyama, she finally remembered, but only because Hinata had ranted about him a lot during their trip to the bookstore — hadn’t been very noisy to begin with, so he simply huffed and turned his attention back to his notebook. But Hinata and his two rowdy companions had the sense to look sheepish, finally realizing just how noisy they’d been, and hung their heads.

"Sorry…" they mumbled in unison.

And then, to everyone’s surprise, Hinata leaned back in his chair, craned his neck around Tsukishima’s figure, and made eye-contact with Yachi.

"Sorry, Yachi!" he called out to her. "We didn’t realize we were being too loud!"

"I-It… It’s okay." She was just as dumbfounded as the others.

Tsukishima glared at the top of his head for his yelling. “What did I  _just_ say?”

He was ignored. Instead, Hinata flashed Yachi a thumbs-up sign. “Natsu loved the bookmark, by the way! Thanks again, Yachi.”

Suddenly all eyes were on her, and Yachi gulped thickly at the attention. “Um… no problem,” she replied weakly, flashing him a small smile before picking up her book once again, praying that no one noticed the red on her cheeks.

Over the blood rushing through her ears, she heard his friends asking exactly what his words had meant and Hinata casually explaining about the friendship they had struck up, as well as their trip to the bookstore last weekend. Their incredulous, horrifyingly loud cry — “a  _date?!”_ — probably echoed through the entire library.

Yachi was pretty sure that if she buried her face any further into her book, she would have fallen into it.

.

Eventually the exam period passed by, and the studying frenzy that had taken over most of the students fell into a lull. And just like that, Hinata stopped coming to the library.

Yachi was disheartened, even though she’d known from the beginning that his frequent visits had only been temporary. He’d never even stepped foot in the library before after all. Though peace finally returned, it brought with it a depressingly sullen atmosphere.

Yachi sighed deeply as she stacked a few books on the shelf before her, mindlessly reaching for a few more.

"You know, I heard that every time you sigh, you lose a bit of your happiness," Hinata’s voice broke through her thoughts, and resisting the urge to shriek at the shock, she swung around and found him standing at the end of the aisle. He was watching her with a cocked head and a worried expression on his face.

"So it’s important not to sigh, okay?" he pressed on, offering her a small smile that instantly made her feel better. "Collect all the happiness you can while you have the chance!"

She set down the books in her hands and began fiddling with her fingers again. “Hinata… I’ll remember that.”

He nodded approvingly. “Good. But let me help you start!” Bouncing where he stood from his excitement, he eagerly reached into his bag and pulled out a small paper bag. It was decorated on the outside with childishly drawn hearts and stars.

"What’s that?" Yachi asked curiously.

"For you," he replied, handing her the bag. "Cookies. From Natsu. She made them together with Okaa-san. They’re a thank you for the bookmark."

"Oh!" She instantly brightened, accepting the bag and peeking inside. A delicious, sweet aroma drifted towards her, and she felt her heart melt. "She didn’t have to do  _this!”_

"She just loved it that much," he responded cheerily. "So those are from her — and  _this_ is from me.”

From behind his back, he pulled out a small, vibrant sunflower, which he thrust in front of her face. She couldn’t help but blush as she accepted it — no one had ever given her a flower before, much less a  _boy_ — and tentatively took a sniff so she would have an excuse to hide her face.

"What’s  _this_ for, Hinata?”

He rubbed the back of his head, a habit of his she had picked up on long ago.

"I saw it on my way to school today and thought you might like it! It’s a thank you from  _me,_ for taking me to your favorite bookstore and for helping me find the perfect book to study for my Biology exam.”

She immediately perked up, having completely forgotten to ask him about the results. Though if he was happy enough to bring her flowers, she had high hopes. “How did you do?”

"Well, I didn’t  _fail!”_ he whooped, pumping his fist, and she wondered whether she should take the vague reply as good news or bad news for his exact grade. Finally she decided not to ask at all, since there was no need to ruin the good atmosphere between them.

"But really, Yachi, I can’t thank you enough!" he continued, bouncing on his feet again. "Now that I’ve passed all my exams, I can keep playing volleyball!"

He looked like he was practically going to  _burst_ from happiness at the declaration, but Yachi was instantly bewildered.

"Eh? Hinata, you play volleyball?"

His lips rounded into a surprised  _'o'_ at her question. “You didn’t know?”

She shook her head. Truthfully, she hadn’t known their school even  _had_ a volleyball team; she wasn’t exactly the biggest sports fan since she’d always been so awful at them.

"Then you  _have_ to come to our game this weekend!” Hinata proclaimed loudly, stepping closer to her as if to push her into agreeing.

"Huh? Well…" She averted her eyes, not sure she would enjoy going to a volleyball game, even if Hinata was playing in it. But he wouldn’t take no for an answer.

"You’ll love it!" he insisted, joyously throwing his arms into the air. "There’s nothing else like it, Yachi! The smell of air salonpas in the air, the volleyballs flying across the court, the cheering crowd, the sound of a volleyball smacking against the ground." His cheeks had flushed just by imagining it, and Yachi watched in awe as his eyes twinkled in a way she had never seen them twinkle before.

"You definitely  _have_ to come!” he abruptly repeated, just before turning on his heels and dashing out of the library. He turned back at the door and asserted one last time, “Definitely!”

He was like a hurricane, and Yachi was well aware she was completely being tugged along by his pace. She held her sunflower against her cheek and decided that she didn’t particularly mind.

.

Despite all the wonderful things she had learned about Hinata already — his sunny personality, how bright his smiles could be, how much he loved his sister, that he had a lovely taste in flowers — Yachi didn’t fall in love with him until she watched him play volleyball.

He leaped into the air, his legs arched behind him, his arms stretched as if to brush the ceiling, his back tensed, his hair rustling from the rush, his face deadly calm, his eyes intensely focused on the ball, as if he was  _flying_  — and she was done for.

She forgot about the noisy crowd around her. She forgot about her concern for how tall the other team’s players were. She forgot about her shock at all the familiar faces on the court by Hinata’s side.

The ball connected with his hand —  _smack —_ and flew past the opponent’s defense in a blur, colliding with the ground —  _thunk._ The people around her erupted into cheers, but Yachi was silent. She simply clutched the railing with trembling hands and followed Hinata with her gaze.

He was elated; he jumped into the air with a “yahoo!” and high-fived the teammates around him. When he grinned, so did she. But when his smile melted into a look of fierce concentration in a split second, she felt a shiver run down her spine.

She had never thought a boy to be beautiful before, but that’s exactly what Hinata was when he soared.

.

They won their match, and he couldn’t have been happier. The team paused their celebratory dog-pile to bow and shake hands with their opponents politely, but there was no smothering their pleased smirks.

When they turned towards the spectators to express their gratitude for their supporters, his eyes met hers, and they widened.

 _"Oh!"_ he exclaimed in surprise, pointing right at her. “You came!”

All around her people were whispering, wondering who she was, and Yachi shrank down a bit in embarrassment.

Hinata didn’t seem to notice at all. “Wait there for me!” he chirped up to her, right before rushing off to join the rest of his team with clean up.

Yachi did as he asked, taking a seat on one of the plastic bleachers and patiently waiting for him to finish with his post-game obligations. It was strange how calm she felt, that with how nervous she usually was around him, after realizing she was in love with the boy, she wasn’t anxious at all.

Maybe it was how  _right_ the revelation felt. It was as if she had always known that this would happen, that it was inevitable her heart would sway towards him one day. She was completely at peace right now.

That didn’t mean her heart  _didn’t_ jump into her throat when he finally made his way to her, arms waving in the air, but she knew herself and knew she could have been much,  _much_ worse.

"Did you see me?" he asked eagerly as soon as he was before her.

"I did!" she replied just as enthusiastically. "You were… you were just  _amazing,_ Hinata.”

He swelled with pride, his chest puffing out and his nose turning up into the air. He didn’t have his feathers ruffled often enough if this was his reaction to such a simple compliment, she thought to herself with a giggle.

"And it’s all because I  _somehow_ managed to pass all my exams,” he said with a relieved sigh. “I was pretty close to being suspended for a second.”

The mention of his grades suddenly reminded Yachi of something she had been mulling over ever since exam period had ended and Hinata had stopped coming to the library. She wondered whether a noisy, crowded gym was the best place to broach the topic, but then decided that she would probably never get a better opening again.

"You know, I’ve been thinking, Hinata," she mused aloud, attempting to sound casual as she put a finger to her chin. "I… wouldn’t mind tutoring you every once in a while, if you would be okay with me." The delivery of her offer was so confident that she didn’t even recognize herself. She just knew she  _needed_ more reasons to see him.

He leaned towards her, his eyes widening earnestly. “Really?”

"Yeah." She twirled her finger in her hair. Hinata wasn’t the only one who had a habit of playing with his hair. "I mean, there will always be exams to worry about, right? I wouldn’t mind helping you study. You know, so you can keep your position on the team. I…" Here, she paused in embarrassment, for the admittance seemed slightly too intimate for comfort since it was the reason she had fallen for him and all. She finally said it all in one big rush: "I want to keep watching you play volleyball."

That was apparently the greatest compliment she could have given him, because his cheeks actually tinged a light pink and he hung his head, taking a keen interest in his sneakers. Yachi was almost struck dumb.

"R-Really?"

She bobbed her head furiously. “Yes! Watching you play was like — it was like ‘woah!’”

He met her eyes again with a radiant beam on his face. “Okay then! Please take care of me!”

He promptly ducked into a deep bow, bending at the waist, and Yachi awkwardly followed suit, feeling flustered at his unexpected action.

"L-Likewise."

He snapped back up quickly, pointing towards the exit. “Now, come on! I’ll treat you to ice-cream as a thank you!”

"Eh?" Her surprise caused her to lag, and in the blink of an eye Hinata was already halfway to the door, laughing and calling for her over his shoulder. "W-Wait for me!"

He didn’t stop, but he did slow down enough for her to catch up to him. She did so with flushed cheeks, and it was almost on instinct when her fingers curled around his — as if to keep him from going somewhere she could not follow.

Hinata didn’t seem to mind, but she hadn’t deluded herself into thinking it was because he might have fallen for her too. He was just a boy who was comfortable with physical contact, someone who was willing to hold hands if that was what the other person wanted, even despite his own shyness. Still, she used that to her advantage when she squeezed his hand, and her heart soared when he unconsciously squeezed hers back.

His palm was bright red from all the times it had smacked against the volleyball, and Yachi knew she wouldn’t have liked it any other way.


	2. HinaYachi: Sun-Kissed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hinata loves kisses and it’s not good for Yachi’s heart.

**Hinata x Yachi**

.

The first one is thoughtless.

It’s one of gratitude, but Yachi’s fairly sure he’s still running on adrenaline from the game, elated to be rotated back onto the court and get to play again, so he doesn’t quite think about what he’s doing when he beams at her, handing her the water bottle she had offered to take, and pecks her cheek for barely a nanosecond.

"Thanks, Yachi!" he whoops from over his shoulder, already halfway back onto the court.

She drops the water bottle.

Too engrossed in the game, no one else on the court seems to have noticed what had just transpired, but beside her, Sugawara and Yamaguchi simultaneously flash her nervous glances, and Takeda-sensei sort of freezes where he stands. Ukai just raises one eyebrow.

"He… I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by it!" Sugawara instantly pipes up, sidling up to her side when she starts looking a little green around the edges. Putting a comforting hand on her shoulder but squeezing just a little too hard to be considered casual, he stares at her intently and tries to smile, a bead of sweat already forming on his temple. "You know what Hinata’s like!"

"Y-Y-Yes! Of course! Not at all!" she exclaims, eyes wide and panicked. She flings herself onto the ground, scooping up the water bottle that had clattered on the floorboards, and awkwardly salutes the worried vice-captain of their team. "I-I-I’ll go put this with the others!"

Extremely aware that her arms and legs are not moving in harmony, she stiffly marches over to the bench and places Hinata’s water with the other supplies. It’s there, when she’s turned away from the others and no one can see her face, that she finally lets her brain short-circuit.

A kiss! A kiss from a  _boy!_  A kiss from  _Hinata!_  Hinata’s  _lips_  had touched her cheek!  _A kiss!_

When Tsukishima puts a hand on her shoulder, impatiently asking for his water bottle, she all but breaks apart under his touch; face flaming and eyes out of focus, she manages a garbled  _"urrngghh"_  before passing out in his arms.

"Oi!" the bespectacled blocker cries out in alarm.

Hinata, who’s jumping up and down on the court in celebration of an  _amazing_  spike, has no idea what he’s done.

.

The second one is for comfort.

Yachi has gotten used to dodging stray balls on the court during practice by now (after finally learning that assassins are  _not_  out for her life), but with so many volleyballs flying across the gym all at once, the occasional mishap is impossible to avoid.

Today’s accident is the worst yet. While spiking a ball so hard that even Nishinoya cannot receive it is normally a reason to celebrate, Hinata’s pumped  _"yeah!"_ comes to an abrupt halt when the stray ball goes whizzing across the court and smacks an unsuspecting Yachi right in the face.

_"Umph!"_ She goes flying back from the impact, and before she knows it, she’s sprawled on the floor, stars obstructing her view of the ceiling.

Various concerned voices ring out from all over the gym.

"Yachi-san!"

"Yacchan!"

"Yachi!"

The loudest of all is Hinata’s shrill cry, and instantly he’s by her side, helping her sit up while looking both concerned and guilty that his ball had been the one to send her flying.

"Are you all right!" he asks in a fluster, shaking her by the shoulders, not realizing it just makes her dizziness worse. "Do you know who you are! Do you know who  _I_ am! Do you know  _where_  you are! Do —”

"Hinata," comes Sugawara’s voice, gentle but with a hint of warning, like a mother trying to teach a kid right from wrong. "Give her room to breathe. And don’t shake her so much."

"S-Sorry." He stops jostling her but, still looking dismayed, sticks his head right in her face. "Are you all right, Yachi?"

"Hnnnn…" she manages, feeling like she just got off a roller coaster after it had looped its track three times. She’s just thankful it hadn’t been Hinata’s deadly quick attack that had hit her, but even his normal spikes  _hurt._

"Y-Your nose is all red!" Asahi stutters, sounding fidgety and panicked.

"You’re not hurt, are you?" Hinata presses her.

Yachi wants to assure him that no, she is not hurt, except the stinging of her face causes her eyes to involuntarily tear up. Just the slightest wetness pools beneath her lashes — no big deal — except Hinata mistakes the glassiness of her eyes as something much worse.

"Oh,  _no!”_ he exclaims in horror, fisting his orange hair from both sides. “No, no, no! Please don’t cry, Yachi!”

"Way to go, Hinata!" Tanaka barks from somewhere behind him, obviously trying to rile the boy up, which earns him a smack from Daichi for making the situation worse — and the situation has definitely become worse: Hinata is practically in hysterics by this point.

"I’m sorry, Yachi! I’m sorry, okay? Please,  _please_ don’t cry?” He just keeps on blabbering and stuttering through his apologies, and Yachi is still so out of it that she’s not absorbing any of his words.

"L-Look, I’ll make it all better!" Hinata carries on, and suddenly warm hands press against her cheeks, soothingly rubbing circles over her skin to help the stinging as he begins to chant, "Pain, pain, go away. Pain, pain, go away."

And he leans in and presses a kiss to her red nose.

The team looks on in shocked silence. Even Yachi is speechless.

"Is it better now?" he asks in worry, completely oblivious. "That always makes my little sister feel better."

She says nothing, unable to process words fast enough to reply, and she’s fairly sure the rest of the team is suffering a rather similar fate (except for Nishinoya, who looks mildly impressed by Hinata’s unintended bravery).

Hinata mistakes her silence. “Yachi?” he calls out to her unsurely, still holding her cheeks in his palms as he leans in so close to her face that their noses could have touched. “Are you all right?”

She simply nods her head wordlessly.

.

The third one is a little clumsy and a little giddy, just like the teenage boy who initiates it.

It’s at the back of the gym that Yachi finally confesses to Hinata. They’d met coincidentally in the hallway, and while walking to practice together, she gazes upon him, all bright and warm from the sunlight as he chatters animatedly, and it kind of just slips out.

They stop right there and, eyes wide, he cocks his head to the side. “Eh?”

Red settles on Yachi’s cheeks, and she immediately takes a step away from him, flitting her eyes this way and that and fidgeting with her hands in a fluster.

"I-I-I m-mean… j-j-just that — forget it! I’m sorry!"

With a shrill squeak, she turns tail and tries to bolt out of there, except Hinata’s reflexes are much faster than her pathetic ones, so he takes her wrist in his grasp without delay and pulls her back. Wary of hurting her, though, his grip loosens in favor of taking both her hands in his instead.

"S-Say it again!" he exclaims, eyes still wide and mouth hanging open in awe.

"I… I…" Refusing to meet his eyes, especially since his intense and starry gaze has her flushing, she just flounders for a way out.

"Hey, hey, Yachi!" he presses on, his own cheeks reddening, but his flush is from excitement. "Say it again!"

Her lips part, and she ducks her head before the shy mumble falls from her tongue. “…I like you, Hinata.”

He swallows thickly, and then leans in closer to her face. “As… as a  _friend?”_ he asks in a voice that is barely audible, his expression earnest and expectant.

"N-no!" she clarifies, shaking her head just once so that her hair swishes against her cheeks. Her gaze trails to their joined hands and she unconsciously gives his a squeeze. "As more than a friend."

_"No way…"_

She doesn’t see his face but she hears the unhidden  _awe_ in his whisper, and before she can fall back to her usual setting of imagining the worst possible scenario, he repeats it again  _much_ more loudly.

_"NO. FREAKING. WAY!"_

Suddenly he’s yanking their arms into the air and jumping up and down and just basically spinning them round and round in circles, all the while beaming joyously at her with that ear-to-ear grin that is so often on his face.

Her mouth falls open in surprise. “H-Hinata? Wh-what—”

"I like you, too, Yachi!" he exclaims, bouncing on his heels where he stands. "I like you as more than a friend, too! Isn’t it  _amazing!_ ”

"R-R-R—" She can barely get the word out in her shock. "Really?"

"Yeah, really!" he whoops.

He tugs her forward by the hands, and his lips are uncoordinated and slightly out of sync as they briefly connect with her forehead, but Yachi doesn’t even care because his kiss causes butterflies to erupt in her stomach either way.

They jump up and down together at the back of the gym until they realize that they’re running late for practice.

.

The fourth one — and every one after that — is so very much like Hinata.

He catches her in the courtyard during lunch break, tearing her attention away from the vending machine and to the paper he’s fluttering above his head instead.

"I passed!" he cheers, skidding to a halt before her. "I passed an English test for the first time, Yachi!"

The grade is still horrendous, just barely above a fail, but it’s such a vast improvement that her eyes actually tear up at the news. Clapping her hands together, she joins in with his celebration.

"Oh, congratulations, Hinata!"

"And it’s all thanks to  _you,”_ he declares, beaming. “Thanks for tutoring me!”

She has only enough time to cry out a shrill  _"kya!"_ before he scoops down, picks her up by the waist, and spins her in the air.

_"H-Hinata,"_  she protests, feeling warmth engulf her ears as she double-checks that they’re alone in the courtyard, but he’s too busy whooping to listen.

"You’re a genius!" he sings, bringing her face right in front of his own.

The first one is on her cheek, and it  _already_ has her blushing something fierce. But then his kisses trail across her jaw, to her other cheek, to her ears, her eyes, her forehead, her nose, the edges of her mouth, just below her chin — and then the cycle starts all over again. They’re little pecks, peppering across her skin in a flurry so quickly that she can barely process each one, and he basically  _smothers_ her face in them in his excitement.

She can barely  _breathe._

_"H-Hinata!"_ she continues to protest, her voice a soft whine, but it’s more from shyness than anything else. She does not hate his kisses.

He beams up at her, showing teeth in his wide grin, and his hold on her waist tightens. “Hey, Yachi, I don’t have to take supplementary lessons for the first time  _ever,_ so let’s go on a date, okay? We’ll go  _an-y-where_ you want.”

Before she can answer, he’s spinning her around and kissing her all over her face again, and eventually Yachi realizes there’s no point in even protesting.

She happily gives in.

.

.

**extra:**

Yachi’s kisses are much different than Hinata’s.

She’s not as animated as her other half; she’s shy and self-conscious, so physical contact in their relationship is always left up to Hinata. The most courage she’s ever managed to muster is to shyly grab hold of the back of his shirt, which lets him know that she wants to hold hands but is much too embarrassed to ask.

But when he loses a match and the air is too heavy for soothing words, she sets her insecurities aside and offers him comfort in physical form.

She’ll gently take his hands into hers, and she’ll press light kisses into his palms until the redness fades away.


	3. YamaYachi: Wide Eyes And Rosy Cheeks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yamaguchi is too tall and no one minds more than him.

**Yamaguchi x Yachi**

.

It was a little thing. Yamaguchi was embarrassed he had even noticed at all, because what did that say about how much he stared at her and basically noticed everything about her?

He wasn’t sure if Yachi even realized she did it, but now that he was curious he had to know, so he sidled up next to her one practice, as close as his heart could handle, and — yup, there she went.

She  _slowly_  rose a few centimeters in height, and when he looked at their feet, she was balancing herself on her toes.

He’d first noticed it when they’d stopped in the school hallway to talk; she’d been strangely wobbly on her feet and  _definitely_ just a little bit taller than he remembered her to be, and he’d looked down to find that she was stretching up on her toes as if trying to see eye-to-eye. Feeling confused and slightly awkward, he didn’t comment and neither did she, and so he was only left to wonder.

Yamaguchi didn’t know what to make of it, and he was scared of asking her whether she knew she did it, because what if she told him he was  _too tall_ and he was rejected for his awkward, gangly height before he had ever even confessed?

Because even on her toes she barely came up to half his height, and maybe she thought they looked silly standing side by side, or maybe her neck hurt from craning to look at him and now she was starting to hate how insanely tall he was because it was causing her physical pain.

He couldn’t help how tall he was, though, and that hurt the most. How was he supposed to go about getting her to like him when his physical appearance just outright repulsed her?

He spent more time than he cared to admit on the Internet looking up tips on how to appear shorter.

.

Of course. It was simple.  _Crouching._

It was the opposite of what she was doing, but it would have the same effect while saving her from doing all the work. Next time he saw her on her toes, he decided, he would swoop down just a little so that his face was closer and it gave him a shorter appearance.

But while standing on one’s toes was a simple, easily over-looked action, crouching was nowhere near as graceful. When he bent slightly at the waist and ducked his head, she immediately noticed.

"Yamaguchi-kun, what’s wrong?" she asked in concern, her head tilting as she looked him up and down. A thought seemed to strike her when her eyes widened, and with a horrified gasp, she exclaimed, "Oh,  _no!_ Is it your stomach? Does your stomach hurt? Because I have some stomach medicine! Would you like some? I’ll go get it!”

"E-Er,  _no…_ Y-Yachi-san…” He called after her weakly, but she was already gone, making a mad dash for her first aid kit in a fluster as the rest of the team stared at their panicky manager.

"Eh? Yamaguchi? You sure you don’t just need to use the bathroom?" Hinata’s loud voice echoed throughout the gym.

If it was possible to combust on the spot, Yamaguchi wished that fate upon himself at that very moment.

.

"Maybe I should cut my hair…"

Tsukishima raised a single eyebrow at his sudden thought, but did not say anything.

He lightly touched his hair, long and shaggy like it had been for as long as he remembered, and frowned. “What do you think, Tsukki?”

The middle blocker sighed loudly. He always hated conversation on the way home from practice, especially on days when Hinata particularly annoyed him, but Yamaguchi couldn’t help wanting a second opinion before he made any drastic changes.

"Why the sudden interest?"

"Well… I was thinking that it might make me look shorter." He pointed towards that one strand of his hair that always stood straight. These days he couldn’t help but wonder if it added on to his already ridiculously tall stature, giving Yachi the impression that she was talking to someone giant.

"Haircuts can’t magically fix bed head, Yamaguchi," Tsukishima quipped, frowning. "And why would a volleyball player want to look shorter?"

"Uh…" He looked down at the ground uncomfortably, aware of his childhood friend’s suspicious frown but not ready to divulge to anyone just yet that he maybe-sorta  _liked_ the adorable manager who’d been by their side since first year. Instead, he laughed loudly and awkwardly. “Ha ha! I guess you’re right.”

Tsukishima sighed but did not ask any more questions.

.

He spent too much time in practice staring at her feet more than anything, which had earned him quite a few balls to the face, but it was also how he discovered that she never did it with anyone else.

Hinata was no problem; the two were already similar in height. But even when she stood next to Tsukishima, who was even taller than  _him,_ or Kageyama, her heels remained planted on the ground.

So why, then, did she think of only him as too tall?

Maybe he stood  _too_ close, he realized, an embarrassed flush creeping across his cheeks. Maybe he stood so close — because he wanted to  _always_ be close to her — that to her it felt like standing next to a building and she had to tilt her head back to see his face and it annoyed her.

And so it was decided that he needed to keep his distance.

If she handed him a water bottle during practice, he made sure to stand just close enough that his arm could stretch out and accept it and not a step closer. If they were practicing spiking, he made sure to get in the line where she wasn’t the one tossing the balls to the setter. If all the third years agreed to walk home together, he made sure to hang near the back with Tsukishima and never in the front with her and Hinata and Kageyama.

Keeping his distance also included a lot of hiding behind Tsukishima’s back, much to his friend’s annoyance, but he liked that better than the idea of Yachi coming to hate him because of his stupid, stupid height.

It seemed like a perfectly fine system — he hadn’t seen her on her toes in  _weeks_ — until Hinata glared at him on the way home from practice one afternoon.

"Geez, Yamaguchi," he groused. "I always thought you were a bit more of a stand-up guy than Tsukishima at least, but I guess I was wrong."

Yamaguchi’s eyes widened. “What?”

"Yachi’s been perfectly nice to you, you know," he continued to grumble, crossing his arms and huffing loudly. "She’s perfectly nice to  _everyone._ How do you feel knowing you made a nice girl like her cry?”

His heart sank all the way to his stomach, dread pooling there along with a bundle of butterflies, and he swallowed thickly and audibly. “Sh-She was  _crying?”_

"Well, it wasn’t  _chocolate milk_ coming out of her eyes,” Hinata quipped, his lips pursing in blatant disapproval. “She came up to me asking what she did wrong for you to suddenly start ignoring her, crying about how you’ve been avoiding her lately and how you  _must_ hate her.  _What do you have to say for yourself?”_

Hinata ended his tirade with a stamp of his foot and a swing of his backpack, which hit Yamaguchi square in the chest. Even Kageyama and Tsukishima were staring at him now, and he practically  _felt_  his face paling in horror.

"E-E-Excuse me!"

Spinning where he stood, he bolted back up their path and retraced his steps all the way back to school, heart drumming in his ears.

.

She was still at school, having taken up the task to help Takeda-sensei organize the club record books, and she jumped when he came barreling into the teacher’s lounge without warning.

"Yamaguchi-kun!" she cried, hand finding her heart, her voice shrill from the shock. Takeda-sensei was nowhere to be found.

"Y-Y-Y-Yachi-san," he wheezed in return, winded from his run. Still, he managed to steady his voice to say the most important thing, even if he couldn’t meet her eyes and had to stare at the ground. "I… um… I’m  _sorry_  for making you cry.”

"E-Eh?" she squeaked, covering her mouth with both hands as an insanely adorable shade of red tinged her cheeks. "How do you know? D-Did H-Hinata…"

"He told me," Yamaguchi confirmed, nodding slowly. "And I, um…"

_God,_ it was  _so hard_  to get the words out, and he didn’t even know  _what_ he wanted to say and how much he wanted to tell her, and he was really scared that she’d read between the lines and realize how he felt and things would never be the same between them, and she looked  _so cute_ sitting there expectantly with wide eyes and rosy cheeks and a trembling bottom lip a-and —

He swallowed loudly.

"Um… I just wanted to say th-that I don’t…  _hate_ you. I never did.”  _And I never could._

Her lower lip trembled even more. “Th-Then why did you start avoiding me, Yamaguchi-kun?”

"W-Well, you see…" He scratched the back of his head sheepishly, feeling his ears warm. "I-I don’t know if you realize this, Yachi-san, b-but when you’re standing next to me, you… stand on your toes."

Oh, it sounded so  _silly_ when he said it out loud and he felt like a complete idiot. How could he have made Yachi cry and think he hated her just because she  _stood on her toes?_

But, to his utter surprise, she flushed deep scarlet.

"Yamaguchi-kun, y-y-you noticed?" She started twirling a lock of her hair, looking around the room without meeting his eyes, and he was dumbstruck.

"So, you were doing it on  _purpose?”_ he asked incredulously, and she jumped where she sat and squeaked, nodding her head in reply.  _"Why?"_

"Because… Because I’m  _too short,_ Yamaguchi-kun!” she burst out, groaning lightly in frustration. Fisting her hair on both sides and flailing in her seat, she continued to ramble. “I thought I would look a little taller if I stood on my toes, or maybe I could stretch myself out and grow a little bit. And I  _know_ it’s silly, but I didn’t know what else to  _do!_ I  _already_ drink milk every morning and try to go to bed early, but I just  _won’t grow any taller!”_

"Yachi-san?" he tried to stop her, his head spinning, except she was already off on her tangent.

"And I  _know_ I shouldn’t care about what other people think — I don’t, really, not a lot — e-except my friends said we’d look weird together, that people would think I was your little sister. And I don’t want people to think  _that!_ B-But I decided I wouldn’t c-confess until I was taller and it just wasn’t happening, so I thought that if I can’t  _be_ taller, maybe I could  _look_ taller. So I tried standing on higher places, but there wasn’t always a higher place to stand  _on_ , so I… I…”

She finally trailed off, her mouth hanging open and her hands still tangled in her hair, and they were both just left staring at each other from across the room.

Only one word managed to work its way out of his mouth. “C-Confess?”

.

Their knees knocked together from how close they were sitting, but Yachi didn’t seem to mind and Yamaguchi  _definitely_ did not mind, so he decided not to say anything. She’d been the one to suggest he pull up a chair beside her anyway, so he was much less unsure about being so close to her. And he’d avoided her enough for a lifetime.

"So, Yachi-san? You  _don’t_ think I’m too tall?” he asked meekly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Too tall?" She seemed taken aback by the inquiry. "Of course not. You’re a volleyball player, Yamaguchi-kun. You need to be tall."

"R-Right." And just like that, with those simple words of her, she blew away every excruciating thought he’d been having for the past month about how he repulsed her and how she hated his height and how he needed a piano to fall on his head and flatten him a little.

"A-And are y-you  _sure_ you don’t think I’m too short?” she asked in return, blushing to the roots of her hair and twiddling her thumbs.

"O-Of course not!" he answered vehemently, and his chair scooted towards her a little more when he jerked in his seat. "Yachi-san, you’re p-perfect."

"R-really?

"R-Really."

"Really,  _really?”_

His ears burned. “Really, really.”

And then they were just two blushing idiots sitting alone in the teacher’s lounge, and Takeda-sensei would soon walk in and ask them why they were so red in the face, and Hinata would make kissy noises when they announced that they were together at the next practice, and he’d miss her lips during their first kiss and accidentally kiss her ear instead — but all Yamaguchi could think about at that moment was how much he loved her touch when she placed her trembling hand over his.


	4. TsukiYachi: Closing The Gap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She thinks about the way they are now and the way they used to be, and marvels that she was ever once scared of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a tsukiyachi spin-off to the hinayachi librarian!au in the first chapter, because i really liked the idea of these two being librarians together :)

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

In mid-April, her sanctuary is disturbed by the addition of a new keeper of books.

Takeda-sensei must think he’s being considerate for finding her a coworker to help keep track of the hundreds of books in her library; the man is all smiles as he introduces her to the giant blond with the distasteful sneer on his face, but Yachi gulps when she practically has to lean her head  _all_ the way back just to see his face.

“Tsukishima-kun, Yachi-san,” the faculty advisor introduces them brightly, gesturing from one to the other with his hands. He has to move them diagonally due to the ridiculous height difference between the two students.

Yachi swallows inaudibly, trying not to tremble as she holds out a hand for the boy to shake. “N-Nice to meet you…”

It’s very quiet, but Tsukishima definitely clicks his tongue in annoyance as he has to pull his hand out of his pocket to return the gesture. His giant palm practically smothers hers when they touch.

“Likewise, I guess.” Even his voice is dripping with disinterest.

Takeda-sensei doesn’t feel the tension or chooses to ignore it as he claps his hands together. “Wonderful! I’m sure you’ll get along great.” He claps Tsukishima on his shoulder — Yachi almost squeaks at his bravery while the boy huffs at being jostled — and exclaims, “You can ask Yachi-san  _anything._ She’s already been working here for the past year. She knows this place better than I do at this point. Isn’t that right?”

“N — Ye — Sure!” she manages to squeal, and a rigid hand finds her forehead in a salute. She does it on instinct and slightly out of nerves, and then her cheeks flame red when one of Tsukishima’s eyebrows disappears into his hairline in amusement.

“Wonderful,” Takeda-sensei sings again, beaming with happiness as he gestures for Tsukishima to follow him to the back room for the rest of their tour.

As soon they disappear into the next room, Yachi collapses into her chair and deflates.

.

He’s a quiet one, and it unnerves her. Even after Takeda-sensei departs he doesn’t try to engage her in conversation or get to know any more about the girl he’ll be working with. Yachi would ask him herself, but she’s never been the best at starting conversations, especially with people so stoic.

He doesn’t need to ask her any questions either. He’s a fast learner; it had taken only a single explanation by Takeda-sensei for him to pick up on how to use the library’s database, and he learns how to catalog and shelve the books himself, so that there’s no need to ask her for help. Yachi fluctuates between feeling disappointed that they don’t have that reason to get closer, and feeling relieved they don’t have that reason to have to interact at all.

The morning passes with nothing exchanged between them, save for the few moments they blocked each other walking in opposite directions and got stuck in a repetitive cycle of trying to let the other pass. Tsukishima had huffed in annoyance after the third time and actually  _picked_ her up, ignoring her light shriek, and switched places with her, grumbling under his breath about the tight space behind the counter. She keeps her distance since then.

But mid-afternoon she runs into trouble while shelving books; she’s not tall enough to reach the highest shelf, even on her tip-toes, and while she usually keeps a stepladder in the back room for this exact reason, she’d seen Tsukishima in there a second ago and she hesitates from retrieving it.

Suddenly, the book is snatched from her hands.

“ _Kya!”_ She flails from the sudden loss of weight, managing to catch herself just in time by planting her heels back on the ground, and looks up sharply just in time to see someone slide the book into place for her.

By craning her head back as far as it can go, she makes eye-contact with Tsukishima.

“Oh!” Feeling her heart jump into her throat, she claps a hand over her mouth and practically dances away from under him, unattractively flailing an arm where she had just stood. “S-S-Sorry! I didn’t mean to block your way! I-I was just p-putting away some books. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”

He shoots her a strange look as she continues to fluster. “Did I say you were in my way?” he interrupts her with a sigh.

“E-Eh? But then…” She cocks her head to the side questioningly.

“You’re not tall enough to put the book away, but I am,” is all he says on the matter, stepping around her and lazily slouching back to the front counter. There’s still an air of general disinterest that surrounds him, but Yachi parts her lips in wonder as she watches him go.

He’s surprisingly a good person, she realizes.

.

Yachi’s always been a bit of a pushover when it comes to hecklers. It’s her least favorite part of the job, because she’s always been just awful under pressure and her eyes always tear up when she’s getting yelled at. So when an angry student comes marching into the library one afternoon with an overdue notice clutched in his hand, she can do no more than stammer.

“It says here that my book is two weeks late when I  _know_ I returned it!” he barks in her face, and she feels her lower lip start to tremble as she takes a step back.

“B-But—”

“Can you not even do your job properly!” he snarls, pounding a fist against the counter. “Do you think I have any spare money to give to this shitty library!”

“If it’s so  _shitty,”_ someone suddenly snarks from behind her, disrupting the flow of their argument, “then you don’t need to come around again. We’d be  _eternally_ grateful if we never have to see your dumbass face anymore.”

Yachi claps her hands over her mouth, but she’s not surprised to peek over her shoulder and find Tsukishima standing behind her, sneering down at the dumbstruck student. He leans over her to slap his own hand against the top of the counter.

“That is, of course,  _after_ you give us the money you owe us,” he adds, a dangerous undertone in his voice.

That seems to give the heckler life again. “Now, you see here—” he begins furiously.

“No,  _you_ see here.” Tsukishima swivels the computer screen towards him, and Yachi squeaks when he practically has to wrap his arm around her to do it. “Our database says you haven’t returned it. That’s  _proof._ Do you have proof? Didn’t think so,” he speaks over the boy when he opens his mouth. Next, he drags over a nearby empty cart. “Here’s where all the returned books go. We’ve already put them back on the shelves, and yours  _was not on it._ I’ve already memorized  _every single book_ in this library, and I haven’t seen yours since it was checked out.”

He speaks so confidently that even Yachi can’t tell whether he’s telling the truth. And even if she’d known he was lying, she wouldn’t have dared to argue when he had such a menacing smirk on his face.

“So I say you haven’t returned it.” He leans over the counter and quirks his lips, his eyes narrowing. “Are you calling me a liar?”

The heckler looks back and forth between the two librarians, sweat pooling over his hairline, before his face turns an alarming shade of red. He has no fight, it seems, when he’s up against the wall of intimidation that is Tsukishima. With a huff, he just stomps to the exit.

“Oi,” Tsukishima calls after him, eyes narrowing even further. “Apologize to the girl.”

Yachi startles at her sudden mention, but the heckler ignores the order and scurries out of the library. Tsukishima shakes his head at the behavior, sighing wearily as if he’d been above that entire exchange. His eyes meet Yachi’s for only a brief instant, but he says nothing as he returns to his own chair at the other edge of the counter.

Yachi’s heart hammers in her ears all the way until closing time.

.

She’s never been fidgety about entering the library before — it’s always been her sanctuary, the one place she feels like she’s  _meant_ to be in — but this morning she is just that. Her backpack strung over one shoulder, she tries to balance two different cups of coffee in both trembling hands while also attempting to stop her knees from knocking. It’s been five minutes of standing outside the library door, and she still hasn’t managed it.

She spies Tsukishima’s mop of curly, blond hair through the glass and swallows thickly, trying to find her courage.

It’s quiet this early in the morning, and the library is almost completely deserted. She finds her fellow librarian lazing in his chair, a book cracked open in his hands. For some reason she can’t help but notice that he’s the kind of boy who doesn’t shake his leg when he sits.

“G-Good morning, Tsukishima,” she chirps on her way in. Her face feels stiff, and she hopes her smile doesn’t look as awkward as it feels. Judging by the curious glance he flits towards her, it does.

“H-H-Here!” she hurries on, losing her nerve and ducking her head so as to avoid eye-contact. “I got you some coffee!”

He doesn’t accept it right away. Setting down his book, he simply stares at the cup as if trying to decipher whether she has some ulterior motive for buying him coffee out of the blue, and Yachi feels her hand begin to tremble again.

The truth is, she  _does_ have an ulterior motive. But she’s  _much_ too embarrassed to outright admit that it’s a thank you for dealing with the heckler the other day — and, on top of that, for insisting he apologize to her for his rude behavior. Yachi’s not used to people going out of their way to stick up for her like that, since she’s the kind of person who gets overlooked even in a dwindling crowd.

Instead, she insists again, “F-For you!”

Tsukishima accepts it slowly. “…Thanks.”

He doesn’t ask what it’s for, and for that she’s grateful. He even doesn’t comment when she drags her chair over so it’s next to his, even though normally they sit on opposite ends of the counter. Sitting by him is nowhere near as scary as she’d always imagined it to be.

They sip their coffee at the same time, and the morning is quiet.

.

Around noon, Yachi startles at a sudden weight on her head. Tsukishima makes his presence known by slurping his juice through a straw as he takes his seat beside hers, and she feels around on her head to find that he’d balanced a juice box there.

“For me?” she asks in wonder.

He rolls his eyes, seemingly casual about the whole thing. “For the coffee.”

Yachi feels her cheeks pink and lets her hair fall over her face to cover it up. That coffee had meant to be a thank you, so him buying her juice in return feels like she still owes him, but she’s still too embarrassed to tell him the truth.

“How did you know I like strawberry?” she marvels instead.

“I saw you drinking it once,” he admits with a shrug, and one end of his lips quirks into a smirk. “And it seems like the kind of juice you would like.”

Blushing to her hair, Yachi wonders if that’s a good or bad thing.

.

Pretty soon, they fall into a routine. They shelve books together, with Tsukishima handling the ones that go on higher shelves that she can’t reach, and Yachi handling the ones that go on lower shelves so he doesn’t have to crouch. She checks out all the books since he’s no ray of sunshine and quickly loses his patience with the general human race, but he handles all the future hecklers and rowdy visitors that she doesn’t have the guts to face. She comes early in the mornings to open up since his first class is long before hers, and he closes up at night so she can leave before it gets dark.

There’s not much conversation between them, but it’s no longer because they’re not familiar with each other, but because they’re both the type of people who prefer to quietly read in their free time. Besides, Yachi finds it a bit exciting to piece together his personality by peeking at the titles of his books (he likes dinosaurs and airplanes, and once she even spies a book about volleyball, even though she’d never pegged him as the athletic type).

Coffee in the morning and juice in the afternoon becomes a ritual. She convinces him to try her strawberry juice once, and though it had been  _much_ too sour for him, she fondly remembers the way his nose had scrunched up in distaste.

He falls asleep at the counter one particularly slow day and she affectionately removes his glasses, and he returns the favor a few days later when she wakes to find his jacket draped over her shoulders.

Sometimes the quiet in the library after they lock up is so perfect that neither can pass up the opportunity, so they crack open their textbooks and study together in peaceful silence until they can barely believe how much time has passed.

The light they have on in the back room is the only glow amidst the pitch blackness of the rest of the library, and Yachi finds it both mysterious and thrilling, as if she and Tsukishima are the only two people in the world.

It doesn’t sound like a bad thought.


	5. TsukiYachi: Newlyweds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yachi has a thing for cheesy newlywed cliches.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> inspired by [this](http://captainsback.tumblr.com/post/94349044153/2-by-permission-to-upload-was-given-by-the) fanart (#2).

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

The house was silent when he entered. Something that smelled scrumptious was cooking in the kitchen, but its scent was the only sign that someone might be in the apartment.

"I’m back…" he drawled flatly, impatiently yanking on the knot of his tie.

There was a squeak from down the hall that had him pausing, and then an embarrassed, shrill voice chirped out, “D-Do it  _right_!”

His sigh sounded weary even to his own ears. Honestly, he hadn’t been on board with this ridiculous idea when she’d asked him that morning, and he certainly wasn’t on board now when he was absolutely exhausted from work, but this was his wife and he had made her a vow not even a month ago about making her happy.

He sighed again. “H—”

"No!" she interrupted him. "G-Go out and come back in and do it again!"

He said nothing, and she probably could not see the way he narrowed his eyes on the wall in irritation, but the general sense of  _'are you serious?'_  hung in the silence. When she didn’t retract her statement, he sighed again, this time much more gruffly, but still dutifully marched back out the front door.

On his way back in, he hesitated, and then mumbled blandly into the silence, “Honey… I’m home…”

She must have known that was the best she was going to get, because the pitter-patter of her footsteps gradually got louder until she eventually appeared in the front entrance, looking very much like a housewife in her flowery apron. Her face perked up at the sight of him.

"Kei-kun, you’re home!" She beamed, as if she  _hadn’t_  just made him return home from work for the second time. Gleefully bounding over, she gestured him down to her height, and he lightly grimaced as he obediently bent at the waist. Her fingers skillfully began to unfasten the knot in his tie that he had loosened.

"How was work?" she asked cheerfully.

He made a vague sort of sound, almost like he was clearing his throat rather than answering her question, and just gazed over her shoulder. Her face fell just slightly, but by now she was used to his behavior, so her spirits were not dampened for long.

"Well, I’m glad you’re home," she continued, finally pulling his tie over his head and taking extra care not to bump his glasses. "I just made dinner!"

"Hmm?"

This was her part in the act, and her cheeks flushed in excitement as she clapped her hands in front of her chest. Her apron, as well as the dress underneath, swished around her knees when she bounced a bit where she stood.

"So, what would you like first?" she asked, grinning widely. "Would you like dinner, or a bath, o-or…"

Tsukishima inquisitively raised an eyebrow when she suddenly trailed off, but no words needed to be said when her face was already as red as a fire truck. She was staring at her wiggling feet, face frozen in embarrassment.

Perhaps she heard his intake of breath, because she immediately held up her shaking hands. “W-Wait! I’ll get it! J-J-Just… give me a second.” After taking a deep, reassuring breath, her shoulders squaring in determination, she tried again. “Would you like dinner, or a bath, o-or m-m… m-m-m…”

"This was  _your_  idea,” he deadpanned, when she once again dissolved into a stuttering mess.

Face crumpling, she covered her expression with her hands and escaped into the kitchen, squeaking over her shoulder, “Let’s just have dinner!”

.

She was, of course, adamant about getting it right. Her stubbornness was perhaps a consequence of hanging around that damn Hinata too much, Tsukishima grouched to himself, rather impatiently watching his wife turn into a puddle on the floor the next day.

"Or m-m-m-m…"

He breathed out gruffly. “If it’s  _this_  difficult, then why do you  _insist_ —”

"I really wanna get it right, Kei-kun!" she whined, her voice squeaky from her lasting shyness. Her lips were almost trembling from frustration. "I practiced saying it all day!"

He crossed his arms across his chest and looked down at her pointedly. “And did you think about my answer?”

"H-Huh?"

His eyes narrowed on her just slightly. “What are you going to do after I pick?”

She played with the ends of her apron, twisting the cloth between her fingers as she fidgeted. “Well, of course I’m going to give you what you…”

His eyebrow disappeared into his hairline and just the lightest of smirks touched his lips, and Yachi’s face turned as red as the tomatoes she had cut into the salad.

"Go take a bath!" she cheeped, once more making her escape.

.

By the fifth attempt, he had lost his patience over the whole matter and backed her up against a wall. She flattened against the surface, turning her head away as he bent at the waist and brought his face so close their noses could have touched.

"Dinner, a bath…" she mumbled helplessly. "Or…"

"And what if I pick  _you, hmmm?_ " he drawled, one finger finding her chin to turn her back to face him. Their eyes met, and his glistened sadistically, demanding an answer.

A thrill ran down Yachi’s spine at the dangerous look on his face, but she still grabbed his shoulders and shoved him away in a fluster, aware that he’d moved back willingly and not because of her strength.

“That’s not an option for today!”

He watched her flee with a dark chuckle, and tugged at the tie she had not untied for him today.

.

In bed that night, moments before lights-out, he once again tucked a hand under her chin and brought her face before his own.

"What were the three options again?"

Her eyes widened slightly, but she still dutifully replied, “Dinner, a bath, and m-me!” The usual flush colored her face.

Tsukishima grinned wickedly.  _“‘And,’_  huh?” he repeated, and just as she realized the mistake in her wording, he listed off, “Well, I’ve had dinner, and I’ve had a bath. So all that’s left is…”

She shrieked when he pushed her flat against the covers without warning, but it dissolved into a smothered moan when his experienced lips found hers. He watched her eyelids flutter shut in a daze and, with a smirk, threw the covers over their heads.


	6. TsukiYachi: Sweet Disposition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It doesn't fit his image at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a coffee shop au! with guest appearances by shimizu and yamaguchi.

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

The gangly blond in the far left corner of the shop was seated in  _her_  section, but Yachi took one look at the gruff, irritated scowl on his scary face, squeaked, and dived behind the counter.

Shimizu glanced at her in worry from the cash register. “Are you all right, Hitoka-chan?”

She laughed weakly, hugging her knees to her chest as she crouched on the floor she had mopped just that morning. “Ha ha! Y-Yeah…”

Her bespectacled coworker wasn’t buying it one bit. Lips pursed, she glanced out at the vicinity of the shop, trying to discern what might have upset Yachi to the point that she needed to hide from view. The shop was mostly peaceful, so it took her a moment of searching before her eyes landed on the blond boy and she noticed the generally unwelcoming aura surrounding him.

"Should I… ask Hinata to serve him instead?" Shimizu asked softly.

Yachi startled at having been found out, but still scrambled to her feet, furiously shaking her head and her hands in response. “No, no, no! It’s all right!” Just like her, Hinata wasn’t particularly good at handling the rough customers — the tall, blue-eyed classmate of his who often visited the shop and picked fights with the waiter was proof enough — and she didn’t think it was fair to burden him with something that was part of  _her_  job.

Balling her hands into fists, she steeled herself and declared, “Here I go!”

Still, when the blond turned his sharp brown eyes on her, narrowed just enough that he slightly glared at the trembling waitress, she lost all her determination in a flash. Fidgeting under his scrutiny and mindlessly smoothing down her apron, Yachi persisted.

"Wh-wh-what can I get for you, s-sir?" she asked, cursing herself for how her voice cracked at every other word.

"About time," he drawled impatiently, folding his legs and tapping his finger against the tabletop. When he noticed the way Yachi flushed at his words, obviously ashamed for visibly avoiding him and taking so long to reach his table, he sighed and was significantly less crabby as he ordered, "Strawberry shortcake."

Yachi’s eyes rounded, and she repeated in a shrill, disbelieving tone,  _"Strawberry shortcake?"_

The glare returned full-force, and a shadow crossed over his eyes as he glowered her down and demanded, “Is there a problem?”

 _"Eep!"_  Desperately wishing for another counter to dive behind, she furiously shook her head and scribbled down his unexpected order, berating herself for being so rude to such a scary-looking customer. It was none of her business what the customers enjoyed! Just because strawberry shortcake didn’t fit his image, it didn’t mean she could judge. “A-Anything else?”

"Make that two," he replied, then turned his head away dismissively, his mood obviously soured by her reaction. Yachi flushed, bowed before him twice — once in respect to the customer, and once as an apology — and bounced away to fetch the boy his cakes.

"How was it?" Shimizu asked worriedly as she passed by.

She buried her face in her hands and wailed, “I was horrible to him!”

Shimizu was visibly surprised, mostly because she couldn’t imagine Yachi ever being horrible to anyone, but before she could ask for the full story or soothe her dejection, the waitress disappeared into the kitchen. Since she’d taken so long to get his order, she was determined to get him his cakes in record speed. Balancing two slices of strawberry shortcakes and two cups of coffee on a tray, she practically ran back to his table, the black heels of her uniform clicking against the shop tiles.

When she returned to him, she was surprised to find that he was not alone; a freckled, nearly as tall boy had joined him on the other side of the booth, and he looked much kinder compared to his constantly scowling friend.

Yachi slowly, shyly set down the food on their table, ducking her head in greeting towards the newcomer.

The blond glanced at the coffee and instantly frowned. “I didn’t order coffee.”

"I-I know," she stuttered, playing with the ends of her black dress. "It’s from me. I’m s-sorry for my rudeness, sir."

He raised his eyebrow as his friend looked between them in confusion and inquired, “Rudeness?”

"…Forget about it," he replied flatly, and Yachi wondered if she had simply imagined the way his face softened just a tad. "It really wasn’t that big a deal."

"Th-Then…" She bowed once more. "Enjoy your cakes. Excuse me."

He didn’t glance up from his food and simply hummed vaguely as she took off, while his friend continued to look between the two of them questioningly. Yachi could feel her face flaming as she dashed back to the counter, once again crouching behind it as some sort of defense, though this time she simply wanted to relax her nerves.

When she’d taken in a few gulps of air and felt much more steady, she discreetly peeked out over the top just as the boy took his first bite.

Was that a  _smile_  she saw on his face? she wondered in total awe. It was so tiny and barely noticable that perhaps it was a trick of the light, just like when she’d thought his face had softened. But the idea that he was a boy who smiled at the sweet taste of strawberry shortcake was so  _endearing_  that she wanted to believe it was true, and she placed her fingers against her lips and giggled.

Shimizu appeared from the back room just in time to hear it, and she raised an eyebrow. “Everything all right?” She followed Yachi’s line of sight to the two boys’ table, and frowned. “Was he okay?” There was a very light tinge of danger in her voice like she was waiting for the word to toss them out, as she often did with rude, drunk customers late at night.

But Yachi shook her head and grinned brightly. “He was perfect!”

.

It was halfway through her shift the next afternoon when the same freckled boy from yesterday walked in, stopping at the counter and catching her eye.

"Can I get two strawberry shortcakes?" he ordered, digging into his backpack for his wallet. Almost as an afterthought, he added, "To go."

Surprised that he was not staying, Yachi automatically glanced over his shoulder, and through the shop window she spotted a familiar mop of curly, blond hair. He was waiting outside, hands jammed in his pockets and headphones placed over his ears as he stared aimlessly at the sky. It was as if the surroundings had melted away for him.

His friend realized she had spotted him and laughed softly. “Tsukki really liked the cake here!” he informed her cheerily. “He’s normally never satisfied, you know, but he said the strawberry shortcake here was the best he’s had. Well… he didn’t  _say_  it, but I could tell.” He sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck.

Yachi wasn’t sure why — it wasn’t as if she had made it — but her heart swelled with pride.

"We’re very happy to hear that," she replied with just as much cheer, handing him his cakes and accepting the exact change in return.

Still, she watched them disappear around the corner not much later and felt strangely disappointed.

.

On the weekends she worked the morning shift. She had only just stepped outside to change the words on their chalkboard sign when, halfway through drawing a cup of coffee in the top right corner, a shadow loomed over her and completely blocked out the sun. She glanced back in surprise to find a familiar blond towering over her.

"Oh!" Dusting herself off, she hopped to her feet and flashed him her most welcoming smile, though it felt a bit brittle and nervous at the ends even to herself. "Welcome, sir."

"…Enough with the ‘sir,’" he grumbled under his breath, pushing his hands into his pockets and glancing away. "We’re the same age."

"We  _are?_ " He was almost three times her size! And there was a general air of maturity radiating off him that Yachi was well aware she did not have. It was almost unbelievable, but she suddenly remembered that the day his friend had bought them cakes to go, they’d been wearing her school’s uniform.

Rather than answer her question, he jutted his chin out towards the shop entrance. “Are you open yet?”

They weren’t, not for another twenty minutes, but Yachi couldn’t bear to turn him away. It was her turn to open anyway, so, deciding that no one would know if she let someone in early, she saluted a hand against her forehead and chirped, “Come on in!”

He raised his eyebrow again when she held the door open for him, and she held back a giggle when he had to duck his head to avoid hitting the doorway on his way in. The shop was silent as they were the only two people inside at this time, and she was fairly sure the faint hum she heard from him was one of approval. As much as she loved being around people, Yachi appreciated the peaceful silence as well, so the sound made her smile widely.

"Take a seat anywhere and I’ll bring you some strawberry shortcake," she offered, already bounding towards the back. It was only when she was alone that she realized the surprise on his face had been over the fact that she had memorized his order, and she allowed herself an embarrassed flush.

Hopefully he didn’t think she was too creepy or anything, she worried, and as was Yachi’s personality, she fretted about it all the way back to his table, to the point that her hands almost trembled as she served him his cake. She waited for him to make a noise of disgust, half-believing that he actually would, but he said nothing.

In fact, he glanced between the cake and her face, and after a brief moment of hesitation, he mumbled, “…Thanks…”

She instantly felt better, though when he noticed the way she beamed at him, seemingly over something so small and simple, he huffed and looked away. She couldn’t tell if it was because he was embarrassed or annoyed, but she wanted to believe it was the former, so she did.

She was humming as she bounced away.

.

She watched him from behind the counter, trying to be discreet but probably failing miserably since subtlety wasn’t really her thing and never had been. But still, she wanted to see if the cake would make him smile again, like the first time he had ever taken a bite.

He didn’t, and once again, she felt strangely disappointed.

It was fifteen minutes before opening time, and Yachi had yet to have breakfast herself. She played with the folds of the paper bag in her hand, constantly looking between it and at the boy quietly eating his cake in the corner booth. He wasn’t the most approachable person, but for some reason, she really wanted to join him.

"Um…?" she called into the silence, then immediately regretted it. It was too late to backtrack now, however, because he was already looking at her expectantly and would probably think she was a weirdo if she ran into the kitchen without a word. "W-Would you like — C-Can w-w-we — Um…" She held up the bag with her breakfast bagel inside, and then squeaked out, "C-C-Can I join you!"

If he was surprised by the sudden request, he did not show it. He  _was_  silent for a few beats, however, and Yachi feared she would be refused and the humiliation would haunt her for the rest of her life, until he sighed and gestured airily towards the seat across from his.

"Do what you want," he murmured, already turning back to his cake without another word.

Yachi brightened considerably, almost bursting with happiness as she dashed around the counter and quickly slid into the offered seat, as if afraid he would retract his statement if she didn’t move fast enough. He didn’t, though, and he didn’t even look annoyed when she caught his gaze and beamed at him once more; he just looked away again, much more huffy this time than before.

She’d already realized he was a boy who valued silence, so she didn’t try to coerce him into conversation and unintentionally ruin his mood. Sharing a nice, quiet breakfast alone in the shop was charming enough on its own.

.

"I’ve never known anyone who likes strawberry shortcake so much!" Yachi giggled to her coworker when the boy — Tsukishima, she had finally learned — entered the shop once again. "He’s come here every day for the past  _week!”_

They caught each other’s eye, and she waved cheerfully as he beckoned her towards his table with a jerk of his chin.

Shimizu glanced at the boy in question, who was now impatiently tapping his foot as he waited for the waitress, and briefly wondered whether she should clue Yachi in how utterly  _dense_  she was, before she shook her head with a smile and decided against it. If he didn’t work towards it himself, it would be meaningless.

"Um… Shimizu-san?" Yachi called out to her bashfully, folding her arms behind her back and scuffing circles over the floor with her shoe. She looked about the store, a sudden flush reddening her cheeks. "I know I still have ten more minutes left of my shift, but… w-would you mind if I take my break now?"

It was surprisingly hard to keep a straight face as she pretended to mull over the question. Fighting a small smile, she shook her head and encouraged the girl, “Go on. I won’t tell anyone.”

A joyous smile erupted across the girl’s face, who didn’t need telling twice. Hastily dropping into a bow of gratitude, she spun on her heels and made a beeline for Tsukishima’s table, taking her usual place across from him at his regular booth that he always occupied right around her break time every day.

Shimizu watched from the counter as Yachi chatted animatedly about her day and Tsukishima pretended not to care as he listened to every word, and she wondered once more just  _how_  the girl could be so clueless — both about  _his_  feelings  _and_  her own.


	7. TsukiYachi: Marriage Proposal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this one (and the next two) are part of a collective request i received on tumblr, so they're short ficlets.

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

"So… do you want to?"

"Hm?" Yachi briefly glanced over her shoulder, but she was distracted by the array of books stretched out on the table before her and returned her attention to her mountain load of homework, pressing her pen against her lips and absentmindedly mumbling, "Want to what?"

He shifted uncomfortably on the couch, pressing his hand and the side of the remote against his mouth. “Want to do the whole…  _marriage_ thing.”

Yachi froze her furious scribbling, her hand basically cramping on her from the shock so that her pen rolled away aimlessly, but neither of them reacted when they heard the soft  _thump_ of it falling off the edge and landing on the carpet. Tsukishima took in her pin-straight back and her rigid shoulders and frowned; he knew her well enough to know he should expect a minor-level freak out.

His girlfriend did not disappoint. Her head turned towards him like one of those malfunctioning robots in horror movies, and he was treated to the very familiar sight of her fish-out-of-water face — eyes wide, jaw opening and closing, and red spread across her cheeks.

"M-m-m-m—" She couldn’t get the word out in her shock.

He rolled his eyes, as if she was overreacting about a simple inquiry for the weather instead of a random  _marriage proposal._ He gestured airily towards the TV and grumbled, “You said you wanted to.”

She had indeed looked up from her textbook to watch his movie for a brief second, giggled at the actor proposing to his play-girlfriend, and exclaimed cheerily, “That’s so  _cute!_ Marriage must be so wonderful, don’t you think, Kei-kun?”

And now here she was, on the other end of a marriage proposal from her two-year boyfriend, who, just like her, was still in college, and who,  _unlike_ her, didn’t even like holding hands in public.

She squeaked a little at all the unexpected pressure and, still blushing scarlet, stuttered, “I-I-I didn’t  _mean_ — wasn’t trying to  _i-imply —_ you shouldn’t feel like you  _have_ to—”

"You can say ‘no’ if you want to," he said impatiently, with a roll of his eyes. He already knew she hadn’t meant her words to prompt him into proposing; he had simply thought about them in that split second, agreed somewhat reluctantly that marriage  _did_ seem wonderful, realized that she was just about the only girl he could stand to have near him for more than ten seconds, and popped the question not a moment later.

Yachi played with the end of her skirt, unable to meet his eyes, but still shook her head. “I-I-I don’t want to say no, Kei-kun. Of course not! B-But isn’t it… I mean, too  _soon?_  We’re both still students and we  _just_ moved in together and—”

"I don’t mean for us to get married  _tomorrow,”_ he tutted, half turning his attention back to the movie, in which the fiancé had  _of course_ tragically gotten amnesia and forgotten all about his engagement. Why was he watching this moronic film?

"O-Oh." She continued to play with the end of her skirt, twisting it round and round her finger as she chewed on her bottom lip and mulled over his words. Eventually, she inhaled deeply and reassuringly, then replied, "O-Okay."

"Okay," he repeated flatly, finally switching channels.

"I-I guess that means we’re e-engaged," she squeaked, grabbing her fallen pen so she had something to distract her from her burning face.

"I guess so," he agreed.

He wasn’t making a big deal out of the matter and she knew he would be annoyed if she  _did_ , so she swiveled back towards her homework with trembling hands and a giddy heart while he finally stopped flipping channels at a volleyball game.

Their day carried on.


	8. TsukiYachi: Keeping The Other Person Warm

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

He was clearly very unimpressed with her, and Yachi flushed under his scrutiny. While normally his gaze made her burn, both inside and out, it wasn’t the same when he had his eyes narrowed in irritation or his lips thinned in disapproval.

"The weather man called for snow," he deadpanned, folding his arms across his chest.

"I-I know!" she squeaked, rubbing her bare arm both in indignation and to ease down the goosebumps. She was dressed in only a T-shirt and a skirt as snow continued to drift from the sky and pool at their feet. "And I  _was_  dressed properly before I got here, I swear! B-But then I saw these shivering little kittens on the street, the poor things, so I gave them my hat to huddle in. And there was a little kid on the train who didn’t have mittens and was crying because his hands were so cold. And this poor homeless man down the block didn’t have  _anything_  to keep him warm, s-so I-I gave him my coat to use as a blanket!”

She screwed her eyes shut at the end of her hurried explanation, waiting for Tsukishima to lecture her, or worse, to click his tongue against his cheek like he often did when he was annoyed. After all, he had scolded her many times — well,  _huffed,_  really, but that was as good as scolding when it came to him — about how she cared too much about others and never enough about herself. People would take advantage, he often grumbled.

But no lecture came her way, and she tentatively peeked out from beneath her lashes to find that while he still had his arms rigidly folded in disapproval, the expression on his face had lost much of his irritation.

Maybe she just looked too pitiful, shivering in the cold as snowflakes landed in her hair. Whatever the reason, Tsukishima looked less annoyed at her and more annoyed at the dozens of people milling around them instead, so much so that he eventually grabbed her wrist and wordlessly steered her towards a more deserted street.

 _"H-Huh?_  Kei-kun?” Yachi stuttered, though she still allowed herself to be led away.

On a more empty, peaceful road, Tsukishima finally dropped her wrist and instead began to silently unbutton his own coat. She had only enough time to widen her eyes but not enough to ask what he was doing before he wrapped the ends of his jacket around her, pulling her into his chest.

 _"Eep?"_  she squealed helplessly, unconciously wrapping her arms around his middle and pressing her cheek to his torso. She heard him sigh from above her.

"Don’t misunderstand," he grumbled next to her ear. "It’s just that I’m not taking care of you if you get sick."

Yachi needed a moment to process his words before her cheeks were burning. It had taken months for her to learn Tsukishima-speak, but now she finally understood his actions; he was uncomfortable with affection in public but he was worried she would catch a cold, so he had brought her somewhere deserted all for the sake of wrapping her up in his jacket.

He was so much taller than her that he could have buttoned up his coat all the way and she would have disappeared completely from view, but that was also why she was so toasty and warm all the way from her head down to her toes. For someone so skinny, her boyfriend sure was very, very warm.

With a soft, comfortable sigh, Yachi tightened her hold and allowed herself to melt against him.

They swayed in spot there for who knew how long, as the snow continued to fall.


	9. TsukiYachi: Learning What The Other Person Likes Sexually

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

_"Oh!"_

The warmth she felt coiling in her gut and pooling between her legs was nothing compared to the heat creeping up her neck. She clapped her hands over her mouth, wishing she could evaporate on the spot.

The bed sheets, covering her from the hips down, suddenly rustled and shifted, and not a moment later, her boyfriend’s face popped out from underneath. He propped himself up on his hands, hovering over her, and smirked devilishly.

"That was fast."

She only let out a soft, high-pitched whine in reply.

"So, you like it there,  _hm?”_ he drawled, with that same suggestive gleam in his eyes he always had when they went to bed together. It was something it had taken her a long time to get used to, how apathetic he could be on a daily basis, but what a tease he became whenever sex was involved.

"Where else do you like it?" he murmured, his eyes drinking in the sight of her beneath him. "Here?" Lifting one hand from the mattress, he ran it across her heaving chest, earning him an embarrassed mewl. "Or here?" He delicately ran his palm down her side. "Or here?" His finger circled her navel a few times, until her toes curled. "Or  _here?”_

His hand dipped beneath the bed sheet.

 _"Kei-kun!"_ she whined, covering her entire face and turning her head away. He was staring at her so closely and so intensely that she just couldn’t meet his eyes.

He used the opportunity to press a kiss on her exposed neck,  _right_ at that one spot he had learned only last week was sensitive, and Yachi let out a muffled whimper into her palms.

"I-I-I know where you like it, too, Kei-kun!" she cheeped boldly, and, screwing her eyes shut so she wouldn’t lose her courage, she took his face in her hands and sucked the shell of his ear into her mouth.

 _“_ _!”_  It was like his kryptonite; he collapsed on his own weight, body stretching out and melding against hers, and Yachi squeaked when he used the opportunity to settle properly between her legs.

He growled into her ear, the sound low and dangerous and thrilling.  _You’ll have to pay for that._

He  _thoroughly_ made sure that the punishment fit the crime.


	10. KageYachi: Slightly Bothered

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Kageyama knows he’s awful at comforting people, yet somehow is still offended that Yachi seems to agree.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm actually not much of a kageyachi shipper, but this was requested by an anon, so i wrote it.

**Kageyama x Yachi**

.

Kageyama looks at Hinata and at himself, and he can’t help but compare.

He’s taller than Hinata. It’s an indisputable fact that no one can deny, not just because it only takes one look and the height difference is apparent, but because Hinata is _always_ rambling about how he’s  _so jealous,_ and how he could do  _so much_ with that kind of height, and — Kageyama still hasn’t figured this one out — how a lucifer dogfish might be too expensive to buy with just his allowance.

He’s broader than Hinata. It’s an added bonus that comes with his height. Even the redhead likes to jump behind him when scary players from opposing teams try to trash talk, because he has a broad back that could completely hide a person so tiny from view.

He’s sturdier than Hinata. The middle blocker is so excitable that he never stands still for long, and all that bouncing off the walls makes for a sprightly boy who honestly doesn’t seem like the type to be depended upon during an emergency. Kageyama knows how to be calm, how to be firm, how to be sturdy.

But there’s one thing Hinata has that Kageyama has never achieved, something he’s never even  _wanted_ to achieve before now.

Hinata is  _comforting._

A twig snaps nearby, the third one since they began this stupid test of courage, and it’s Hinata that Yachi goes running towards, burying her face in his back as she squeaks. Kageyama can’t fathom the reasoning behind it; Hinata’s shaking even worse than she is, rooted to the spot and pale as a sheet, completely useless if a serial killer really  _is_ following them, like the two have been whimpering about since the very first twig snap. Yet she holds on tight and actually seems more assured hiding behind the equally frightened redhead.

“Kageyamaaaaa,” Hinata whines, gripping his shirt with a trembling hand. “Wh-What was that?”

The setter rolls his eyes, and the action is a little more exaggerated than it really needs to be. He just can’t stop his eyelid from twitching when he notices that their manager has practically  _draped_ herself over his back, arms wrapped around his middle and eyes screwed shut, and how Hinata’s acting like it’s the most natural thing in the world by the way he ignores it.

“Probably Tanaka-senpai and Asahi-san, idiot,” he hisses. “They were the ones who started right after us.”

“Wh-wh-what if the serial killer already got them and now he’s after  _us?”_ Yachi squeaks, gripping Hinata’s shirt. “I-I don’t taste good at all!”

Kageyama shoots her a strange look. “Serial killers  _just_ kill, not eat—”

“No way, silly!” Hinata rebuts before Kageyama can finish. “Someone who can beat Tanaka-senpai doesn’t exist!”

And instantly she seems to relax at his words, breathing out slowly and evenly, as if Tanaka defeating a serial killer makes more sense than a serial killer following them in the first place. “You’re  _right,”_ she pipes up, her voice still a little shrill. “He could knock anyone unconscious with just one punch, I’m sure! I’m sorry for doubting you, Tanaka-senpai!” she calls out into the woods.

“Please protect us, Tanaka-senpai!” Hinata chimes in loudly, going as far as to cup his hands around his mouth. From somewhere far away, they can  _almost_ hear Tanaka’s confused  _“what?”_ echoing through the forest, and the two glance at each other and burst into giggles.

Kageyama watches them and huffs to himself. This is the difference between him and Hinata; he only knows how to make the situation worse, while Hinata  _gets_ her. They’ve been on the same wavelength since the day they met, something the entire Karasuno team had laughed about the day Hinata got one-third of his quiz questions right due to her tutoring.

Even Kageyama knows it —  _has_ known it all along. But for some reason, it’s suddenly starting to bother him like an inexplicable itch under his skin.

.

Tanaka decides to hold a scary movie night at his place to celebrate the end of exams, and that’s how Kageyama finds himself sitting beside Yachi in front of the couch, more aware of her quivering than the saw-wielding murderer on the screen. On her other side sits Hinata, who is, predictably, shaking from his head to his feet.

When the killer finally kicks open the door to the tool shed, loudly revving his choice of weapon —  _vroom! vroom!_ — Tanaka and Nishinoya burst into laughter, and Yachi shrieks. Popcorn goes flying into the air, and she instantly shoves her face behind Hinata’s shoulder.

She grips his sweater to steady herself, but he’s trembling so much himself that it only makes  _her_ quiver more, and Kageyama wonders, why hadn’t she lunged for him instead?

He’s sitting just as close, and unlike the scaredy cat redhead, the movie hasn’t bothered him one bit all night. He’s been rigid and calm beside her all this time, whereas Hinata’s been squeaking at every little thing and subsequently causing  _her_ to squeak as well. She can’t find  _that_ comforting.

“C-Can we turn on the lights?” she yelps, her voice muffled by Hinata’s shoulder.

“That’ll ruin the fun!” Saeko whoops, laughing right along with her brother as a woman is brutally murdered on screen.

Kageyama wants to  _lightly_ suggest that maybe she could sit in the kitchen until she’s calmed down; it’s around the corner so turning on the light won’t bother the movie-watchers, and it’ll muffle the sounds of the movie so she won’t be scared anymore. Except it comes out all wrong, until it’s gruff and more aggravated than he actually is.

“Just go to the kitchen,” he snaps — he doesn’t  _mean_  to snap at all, but that’s what it sounds like — and Yachi jumps a bit at his sharp words before hopping to her feet.

“Y-Y-Yes!” With an awkward salute to the entire team, she bolts out of the room just as Kageyama cringes and berates himself for his harsh tone.

“Dude, you suck at talking to girls,” Nishinoya snickers from somewhere behind him, and he hangs his head, cheeks flushing.

.

Maybe this is the first time the two of them have ever been alone. Hinata’s always been there to smooth things between them in the past, but this time, they’re visiting Hinata’s class during the cultural festival like they’d promised they would — a  _haunted house,_ of all things — and since the redhead obviously has duties to attend to, they’re stuck making their way through the attraction, just the two of them.

It looks exactly like the sort of haunted house a class of high-schoolers with a high-schooler budget would put together, but while Kageyama’s unruffled by anything, Yachi hasn’t stopped screeching at every little monster that jumps out at them from the dark.

Watching her legs jiggle like jelly with each step, Kageyama can’t help but compare himself to Hinata once more. If  _he’d_ been here, the tiny manager probably would have clung to him every step of the way, but with him, she keeps her distance no matter how badly she’s scared out of her mind. She won’t touch him, or come near him, or even ask him for comfort — as if he’s scarier than the haunted house.

Kageyama’s well aware that he isn’t the softest boy in school, but even he can take pity on a girl as jumpy and prone to freak-outs as his manager.

It’s an awkward and unpracticed action, very robotic in movement, but when she screams again, he stiffly extends his hand.

“K-Kageyama-kun?” she whimpers, hesitating before she can automatically grasp his fingers.

“If you want — don’t be sc — it’ll be o —  _just take it,”_ he finally spits out, huffy and more than a little embarrassed as he looks away. He’s thankful that haunted houses are supposed to be so dark because his cheeks are probably scarlet.

Yachi’s thick swallow is loud enough to reach his ears. She’s even more nervous than he is, but with wide eyes and lightly curled fingers, she finally slips her dainty palm over his.

“Come on,” he grumbles, tugging her down the marked path.

“Kageyama-kun, y-you won’t mind if I scream, right?” she asks quietly, squeezing his fingers like they’re a lifeline.

His shoulders tense and bunch up, but he mumbles, “…Go ahead.”

And maybe it’s at that moment that she realizes Kageyama hasn’t been annoyed by her fear at all, like his permanent scowl seems to imply; he’s just not very good at offering comfort, not in his own, gruff way.

Proud of herself for working out one mystery about the setter, she fully clutches his arm for support and giggles to herself when he goes rigid in response to her touch.

.

They’re almost near the exit when Hinata finally joins them. He jumps out from behind a black curtain, wearing some terrifying troll mask, and screams,  _“BOO!”_

Yachi lets out a blood-curling shriek and actually  _leaps_ into Kageyama’s arms, who instinctively catches her princess-style.

Hinata lifts up his mask to reveal his wide, dazzling grin. “Wow!” he exclaims brightly. “You two sure are close!”

He laughs when the two look at each other and instantly turn into spluttering tomatoes.


	11. TsukiYachi: Pet Names (Endearments)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another three collective requests on tumblr.

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

Sometimes Yachi’s friends asked her if she was really dating Tsukishima Kei from Class 4, and they probably didn’t mean anything by it, but Yachi heard it as a mix of disbelief and suspicion — “Are you  _really_ dating Tsukishima?” — and it sent her into a downward spiral of self-doubt.

Was it so unbelievable to outsiders looking in? she wondered, her nervous thoughts wandering in class. She and Tsukishima were indeed different as night and day, but that didn’t mean they were incompatible or unbelievable as a couple. Did it?

Could it have been the way they acted around each other? Were they not couple-like enough?

Yachi knew her boyfriend wasn’t the cuddliest boy in school — not when others could see, at least. He might have preferred for his hands to be in his pockets rather than in hers, and he might have preferred to spend their dates in libraries rather than in theme parks, but she still considered them to be a couple like any other. They were certainly teased enough by Tanaka and Nishinoya for it.

But if others couldn’t see it, then she wondered whether they were doing something wrong.

"Tsukishima-kun, d-do you think we’re coupley enough?" she asked him one afternoon, during the walk home together after practice. It was one of the few times they were holding hands, but rather than basking in her giddiness over it, she couldn’t stop thinking about her dilemma.

 _"Coupley,"_  he repeated flatly, frowning. “…That’s not a real word.”

"I  _know._  I-I just meant, do you think we don’t act enough like other couples do?”

"Everyone is different," he replied vaguely. "We’re fine."

Yachi wondered whether she should tell him about how her friends didn’t believe so. Tsukishima would probably think such a trivial worry was silly, but it bothered her. They always somehow forgot that she had a boyfriend, and there was always a touch of disbelief and wonder on their faces as they remembered who he was, like the couple just didn’t make any sense.

"Maybe we’re not doing something right," she mumbled glumly. "I wish there was a manual for dating, like there’s a manual for volleyball. Wouldn’t that make everything so much easier, Tsukishima-kun? I could just go to the library and read up on how to be a girlfriend, just like I learned all about the different volleyball rules. What do you think, Tsukishima-kun?"

He sighed, readjusting his glasses as he replied, “We’re not doing  _anything_ wrong. Not every couple is like every other couple in the world, Yachi.”

"I know…"

She couldn’t help but pout a bit, because her thoughts were still all over the place despite how much sense Tsukishima’s words made to her. She  _knew_  they didn’t need to be cuddly and cute and all over each other all the time to be a good couple — in fact, she’d be much too embarrased to behave such a way in the first place — but she still liked the idea of others being able to tell that they were special to each other.

As Yachi thought about their exchange, mulling over his words and trying to put her mind to rest, something occurred to her.

_Tsukishima-kun… Tsukishima-kun… Tsukishima-kun…_

Wasn’t it  _strange_  that she called her own boyfriend just like everyone else did?

She’d seen couples in school who called each other by their given names, or even by cute little nicknames they’d given each other out of affection. Asking such a thing of Tsukishima might have been too much, but she’d actually dreamed on several occasions of calling him ‘Kei.’ She’d just chickened out before she’d ever mustered up any courage for it at all.

"We’re at the station," Tsukishima suddenly interrupted her thoughts, causing her to startle.

She frantically looked about and realized that they’d made it to the train station while she’d been so busy pondering over their situation, and she felt sheepish that she’d zoned out for almost their entire walk.

"S-Sorry, Kei-kun," she muttered, scratching the back of her head. "I-I was so busy thinking that we didn’t talk much at all. Thank you for walking me here, though."

She tried her best to smile extra brightly at him, to make up for unconsciously ignoring him, but her grin faltered when she noticed the strange look on his face: eyes narrowed and lips pinched, almost like disbelief.

"Wh-What is it?" she stuttered, rubbing at her arm self-consciously.

"…Nothing," he replied after a moment, releasing her hand and jamming both into his pockets as usual. Bunching his shoulders, he slowly shuffled away.

"See you tomorrow!" she called after his retreating back, energetically waving a hand over head.

"Yeah." His soft voice carried all the way to her even though he didn’t turn, and she saw him fidget with his glasses before he added, "See you tomorrow… Hitoka."

Yachi dropped her bag in her shock, clapping her hands over her mouth as she squeaked, and it was only after he’d rounded the corner that she  _realized._


	12. TsukiYachi: Hand Holding

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

Yachi watched helplessly as Karasuno moped about the gym, dragging their feet as they shuffled out of the post-game meeting and headed home for rest after the matches they had played today. Their loss in the Inter-High, despite how hard they had tried, had dampened all their spirits.

She didn’t know what to say. Honestly, she was as depressed as the rest of them; they’d worked  _so hard_ and they’d been  _so hopeful,_ but in the end a single mistake had ended everything.

It was hardest for the third-years, who would now have to decide whether they would continue the club and join the team in the Spring High. She’d already decided she would stay, not  _just_ to find a new manager but because she wanted to see this through to the end, and anyone could have guessed that Hinata and Kageyama would, too. But Yamaguchi and Tsukishima…

She watched as a gleam of determination flashed across Yamaguchi’s eyes and the way his shoulders straightened, and she knew he would be all right. Roving her eyes over the half-dead volleyball players, she looked for Tsukishima.

To her surprise, he was the only one who had yet to leave. Coach Ukai might have canceled morning practice, but he had also stressed how important it was to get some rest, yet Tsukishima hadn’t moved an inch.

He was flipping through the club notebook, and by the crease between his eyebrows as he looked over their formation, Yachi realized he was trying to figure out just  _where_ they had gone wrong. Despite how forcefully the role of captain had been thrust upon him, he took his position seriously, just like he did everything else.

"Um… Tsukishima-kun?" she called out to him, looking over his shoulder. Her hair, which had gotten longer before she’d even realized it, tumbled over her shoulder and she shyly tucked it behind her ear. "Shouldn’t you get some rest?"

He glanced at her for a moment, then turned back to flipping through their many formations without a word. But he did hum lightly so that she wouldn’t be completely ignored.

"You could just take it home, look over it in the morning?" she suggested.

"It’s fresh in my mind  _now,”_ he grumbled back, frowning as he went over Hinata’s stats that Yachi — and Shimizu, when she’d been manager — had carefully written down in the notebook during their many practices.

Yachi watched as his eyebrows furrowed further in agitation, and as he occasionally shook his knee without conscious thought behind the action, and as he bit his thumb as he pored over their team’s data. He was, she realized, a lot more upset than he had led everyone to believe. As captain, there was probably no one who had been more disappointed by their loss, even if he didn’t like to show it.

Without a word, she plopped down beside him on the gymnasium floor, her legs tucked behind her, and it took a long, hesitant pause before she tentatively reached over and placed her palm over the back of his free hand.

He froze halfway through flipping a page, his eyes flitting towards their joined hands, and after pushing his glasses farther up the ridge of his nose, he raised an inquisitive eyebrow in her direction.

"What are you doing?"

"Um… um… c-comforting you?" she replied meekly, her shoulders tensing in embarrassment. "I-I’m sure the loss was hard. Y-You worked harder than anyone, Tsukishima-kun! Coming up with strategies and such. It couldn’t have been easy. And, um, well, s-so I just figured…" She shyly averted her eyes, then squeaked, "Is it okay?"

He stared at her for a silent moment that seemed to drag on forever, just taking in her reddening face and her hand that was so much tinier than his own, before he sighed and once again pushed up his glasses, turning back to the notebook.

"Whatever," he mumbled gruffly, to her instant relief.

He just continued flipping through the notes without another word, but he didn’t protest when her grip tightened, and it wasn’t long before they were properly holding hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm actually super obsessed with the first-years as third-years.


	13. TsukiYachi: Forehead Touching

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

The flu was making its way around the school, taking its toll on many of the students and even the teachers. Almost everyone came to class wearing face masks or with cough drops in their bags, just as a precaution.

Yachi, who carried basically an entire nurse’s kit in her backpack with how paranoid she was, worried for the volleyball team.

They had practice matches lined up for the next few weeks, and she just  _knew_ she couldn’t count on the boys to take care of themselves. Hinata thought nothing of walking home in the cold with only a T-shirt on, and Kageyama had a habit of overworking himself past the point of exhaustion. She was  _constantly_ thinking about the well-being of her team.

So when Hinata sneezed lightly in the middle of practice, she dropped everything and immediately rushed to his side, arms flailing wildly in her panic.

"Oh, no! Hinata, is it a cold?" she demanded, and she thought nothing of it when she bumped their foreheads together to check for a fever.

Hinata grinned widely, laughing. “Nope! Just some dust from the storage room that made me sneezy. But thanks for worrying about me!”

"O-Oh." She sighed deeply in relief, hand over her heart, before shuffling back to the sidelines and allowing practice to resume.

She didn’t think she needed to worry about Tsukishima or Yamaguchi too much; both of them were sensible and knew how to take care of themselves, unlike the other third-years. Still, it was in her nature to fret, especially when it was her job as the team manager, so when she wandered into Class 4 to return a textbook she had borrowed from Yamaguchi and spied Tsukishima with his head down on his desk, her chest immediately tightened.

"Is Tsukishima-kun okay?" she asked Yamaguchi nervously.

"Tsukki’s been tired lately," he explained, rubbing the back of his head. "He’s taking a nap before class starts again."

Yachi clapped a hand over her mouth, eyes widening considerably. “O-Oh, no!” she squeaked. “Wh-What if it’s a fever!”

"Well, I don’t think—"

Yachi scooted around the various desks in her path and hovered over their team captain, biting her lip and thinking twice before she finally jostled his shoulder.

He wasn’t the type to mumble or make any excessive movements when he was suddenly awoken. His eyes simply fluttered open, and then he lifted his head off his arms, shooting her a questioning look.

"A-Are you all right, Tsukishima-kun?" she asked anxiously. "It’s not like you to sleep in school. Do you have a cold? Are you warm?"

And as was her impulse, she pressed their foreheads together, feeling for his temperature — except she found out  _very_ quickly that this was extremely,  _extremely_ different than bumping foreheads with Hinata.

For one, she could properly see his eyes for the first time because his glasses had slipped to the end of his nose during his nap, and they were so brown and so up close and looking  _right back_ up at her, and she could count each and every one of his eyelashes. She could feel the slope of his sharp nose, and the end of his fringe brushed against her forehead so that it lightly tickled. He was everywhere in her vision and suddenly she couldn’t breathe.

"… _You’re_ the one who feels warm,” he drawled. He didn’t immediately pull away, but he placed his chin on his hand and raised an eyebrow and just  _watched_ her. _  
_

Yachi felt her face combust, just _flame_ red until she was practically dizzy from the heat, and wondered whether she  _was_ the one who was really sick.


	14. TsukiYachi: Making Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> inspired by [this](http://tsuki-yachi.tumblr.com/post/108029494564/log-2-by-twitter) fanart (#4).

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

"W-Wait! K-Kei-kun, someone will see —  _mmph. Hmmm…”_

He smothers her protests with his lips upon hers, tongue swiping at her bottom lip with a calm she’s never known herself to possess, and Yachi’s face burns when she turns into putty under his touch.

A hand slides across her waist, pulling her farther into his lap until she grips his shoulders and all but straddles his hips, and if Yachi could have squeaked she would have, except she’s too busy making embarrassing noises, like those throaty moans she has no control over, and trying to figure out just  _when_ to breathe so she doesn’t pass out and humiliate herself.

Tsukishima’s not making it any easier on her by angling his head up  _just right_  and bending a leg between her thighs so that basically she falls right onto his lips, her hair fanning out on either side to hide just how passionately their lips are meshing together  _right_ outside the gymnasium, where anyone from the team could have seen.

Maybe they’ve all left by now, since practice had already ended when Tsukishima bent at the waist and kissed her without warning, somehow managing to rearrange them in this compromising straddle before her hazy mind could comprehend it, but she’s still paranoid. 

"Wait, wait, wait!" she finally manages to gasp, somehow finding the willpower to pull away, but not enough to keep her face from burning.

Tsukishima leans back on the hand at his side, the one casually pressed into the floorboards to carry both their weight, and raises an eyebrow.

"Kei-kun, wh-what if someone sees?" she whispers, screwing her eyes shut because she just  _can’t_ look him in the eyes after they were doing  _that_ in such a public place.

"Then I’ll tell them to mind their own business," he drawls, the hand on her waist gripping her hip tightly. "Or maybe I’ll throw this at them." He gestures aimlessly towards the volleyball near his bag, smirking lightly at the thought of landing a hit on someone’s face.

"B-But, we shouldn’t — there are b-better places — I-I mean —  _hmph.”_

He must have had enough of her mindless stuttering because he rolls his eyes and wordlessly covers her mouth again, swallowing her protests and slanting his lips over hers at an angle so that he can kiss her hard and slow at the same time.

Yachi thinks of other moments when they’ve kissed; secret pecks on the cheek after a match; quickly kissing good-bye when he drops her off at the train station; that one lingering kiss on his couch that had been interrupted by his mother; and those few rough kisses on her doorstep when he brings her home and doesn’t quite know how to say that he’s not ready to part.

But  _this_  is the first gut-clenching, tongue-swiping, breath-stealing, hand-wandering kiss they’ve ever had, and Yachi knows she would have been a complete and absolute  _mess_  if her partner wasn’t Tsukishima.

He’s so calm and reassured with his actions, eyes closed and legs stretched out carelessly, that she knows all she needs to do is hold him tight and do what he does, let him take the lead and trust he knows what to do. And she does trust him.

She pulls back a second time and cheeps one last worry. “Wh-What if a teacher finds us?”

"Doesn’t matter to me." He shrugs, then smirks in a way that most would have seen as infuriatingly cocky but Yachi only sees as reassuring. "I’ll still throw the ball at them."

A soft giggle overtakes her, at the image of the vice-principal’s wig flying out the window when a volleyball rips it from his head, and suddenly she’s not nervous anymore.

"O-Okay…" she says shakily, breathing in to steady her trembling. "P-Please take care of me, Kei-kun."

He’s blatantly amused by her office-worker speech, so out of place in this secret tryst, and though she flushes under his gaze, she also means every word. He’ll take care of her, of that she’s sure.

For the first time,  _she’s_ the one to lean in and take his lips — a symbol of trust even though her eyes are screwed shut and her hands can’t stop trembling.

Tsukishima slides his hand along her waist, she clutches his blazer with a firm grip, and they fall into a slow, easy rhythm.


	15. TsukiYachi: Developed Feelings

**Tsukishima x Yachi**

.

Study sessions with the third-years were always exhausting, to say the least. Tsukishima bit back a snark as he watched Hinata get yet  _another_ answer wrong on his practice test, but only because after three years, he was running out of creative ways to let the boy know he was a dense, hopeless case. The same could be said for Kageyama, who’d been glaring intensely at his paper for the past five minutes, not even sure where to _begin._

Beside him, Yamaguchi had probably realized he was close to his snapping point for how nervous he looked, but before he could bite out something truly harsh, the two boys were saved by possibly the only person in the school who had enough patience to coddle them.

"Kageyama, why don’t you try using this formula?" Yachi suggested brightly, smiling, before turning to the boy on her other side. "And Hinata, you had the right idea, but you plugged in the wrong numbers. Here, let’s start over together, okay?"

Tsukishima watched her, and he wondered how anyone could  _care_ so much. _  
_

Three years, and she still wasn’t tired of the two boys running to her for tutoring over and over again, not even when she had her own homework to finish and her own tests to study for and her own future to plan out. He used to believe the reason was because she was so clearly a pushover, the kind who panicked over everything and didn’t have the guts to turn someone down, but after so many of these group study sessions, his initial conclusion was slowly changing.

She  _enjoyed_ it, and that was baffling. She wasn’t the least bit annoyed when Hinata answered every single question wrong, or when Kageyama tried to pretend he understood everything when he really understood nothing. She liked being needed, and she liked helping them out. He couldn’t fathom where she stored all that patience in that tiny, tiny body of hers.

"Wow, Hinata!" she suddenly exclaimed, almost jumping out of her seat with giddiness. "You got it  _right!_ It’s correct!”

"Oooooooooh!" Hinata’s expression was that comical mix of surprise and awe and elation that was so often on his face, and he and Yachi began eagerly clapping each other’s hands in their excitement. "I’m so pumped up now!"

Tsukishima rolled his eyes, watched them incredulously from across the table, and drawled flatly, “It’s just one question.”

Hinata stuck out his tongue, pulling closer to the table and twirling the pencil in his hand. “Don’t be such a party-pooper, Tsukishima. I’m gonna try the next one!”

He tuned out everything in his surroundings to concentrate on the problem, probably running solely on his excitement by this point. He had such a one-track mind that everything and everyone melted away for him, and Tsukishima narrowed his eyes at being ignored.

Yachi met his gaze from across the table, looking sheepish for the redhead’s sake. “I-I think it’s important to celebrate the little victories, don’t you agree, Tsukishima-kun?” She chanced a sideways glance at Hinata to make sure he wasn’t listening, then leaned over the table, cupped a hand around her mouth, and stage-whispered, “Besides, Hinata works best when he’s praised.”

Her smile was full of laughter, and Tsukishima was reminded of the way she’d smiled when he’d been named captain of the team —  _so happy_ for him, even over something so trivial that shouldn’t matter to her at all.

He looked away and stared at the library wall.  _"Che._ Whatever.”

Yachi didn’t falter at his noncommittal response, like it was something she had gotten used to after three years as manager. Instead, she continued smiling as she turned to Kageyama, who was glaring at his paper once again.

"You’re almost there, Kageyama-kun!" she encouraged him brightly. "The rest is just like that problem we worked out yesterday."

Yesterday, when he’d been annoyed by their constant neediness and had turned away their requests for help with studying, so they had gone to Yachi instead. And here she was, a day later, at it again and no less willing.

Tsukishima had a feeling he might never understand her. They were too different. But as he watched her smile and give the boys the push they needed and somehow never waver through it all, he really,  _really_ wanted to.

.

It was awkward, being alone with Tsukshima, and Yachi realized that this was the first time they ever  _had_  been alone. Normally the third-years always walked home together, or Hinata and Kageyama dropped her off at her bus stop while Tsukishima disappeared with Yamaguchi.

But both Hinata and Kageyama had stayed behind for extra practice, and Yamaguchi had needed to see a teacher after school, and so even though they were already in their third year, for the first time, she and Tsukishima were  _alone._

She glanced up at him discreetly to find that he was staring ahead, his face smoothed into its usual apathy as he listened to the music blaring from his headphones. It was like she wasn’t even beside him.

Yachi tried to look on the bright side. It was better that he acted like she wasn’t even there rather than acting like he was annoyed that he was stuck with her. Hinata had made a big deal about properly dropping her off at the bus stop in his and Kageyama’s stead, much to her embarrassment, and Tsukishima had seemed irked about being ordered around by the redhead as he snapped, “Whatever. Let’s  _go.”_

But at least he didn’t seem irritated now, only completely relaxed, and Yachi figured that was a good sign.

"Th-the team… seems to be getting along well this year, don’t you think, Tsukishima-kun?" she asked to make conversation, wondering if he could even hear her over his music.

Apparently he could, because he mumbled vaguely, hands in his pockets, “Hn…” But that was all the answer she received, and it left her nervously rubbing the back of her head, not sure where to go from there.

So they lapsed into silence, just quietly falling into step beside each other, except when they stepped off the dirt road leading up to the school and instead onto the pavement of the town’s sidewalk, Tsukishima did something very strange; he paused for a step, and then wordlessly switched sides with her, carrying on like nothing had happened.

Yachi was utterly perplexed by the action but didn’t ask. Maybe Tsukishima was secretly a superstitious person and he believed he always needed to walk on a certain side of the sidewalk to obtain good luck. It didn’t seem like him at all, but she didn’t know how to go about asking and it was the best explanation she could come up with on her own, so she believed it. And it wasn’t until a car loudly zoomed past them on the street,  _definitely_ going over the speed limit by the way the tires screeched against the road, that she realized it hadn’t been a baseless action at all.

Tsukishima had casually, purposely taken the side closest to the street. He was, she suddenly understood, subtly protecting her from the traffic.

Yachi wasn’t so sure why that realization left her feeling so embarrassed, but she definitely felt heat on her cheeks as she stared at her shoes. Perhaps it was the sudden awareness that Tsukishima wasn’t a completely indifferent person, but rather someone who simply showed care in his own discreet, guarded way.

She glanced up at him, much more blatantly this time, and after a round of fidgeting, asked, “Practice went well today. I-I think we’ll do great in the Inter-High, don’t you?”

Tsukishima only looked at her briefly before he shoved his hands farther into his pockets and sighed, “Maybe.”

And somehow Yachi just  _knew_ there was more to his reply than just his vague answer, so she bit her lip and listened closely, and she noticed that the sounds from his headphones were noticeably lower in volume than they had been before. He had lowered it especially for her, so he could hear her if she wanted to continue their previous conversation, even though he had acted like he didn’t care at all.

Tsukishima was, she decided right then, something warm sparking in her chest, a boy she desperately wanted to let her in.


	16. All: Entrance Exam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this one was requested by an anon who wanted cheering up for a failed exam. they requested that yachi go through the same thing, and they said they didn't care which ship i wrote — so i wrote _all_ of them!

**All the ships!**

.

Yachi misses practice for the first time, and the entire team notices.

"Huh, where’s Yachi?" Hinata asks around his labored breathing, rubbing sweat off his face with his shirt. "She’s never skipped before." His eyes widen. "Oh! Is she becoming a delinquent!"

Behind him, both Kageyama and Tsukishima roll their eyes at how easily excitable he is, even as a third year student, but it’s Yamaguchi who nervously scratches the back of his head and offers an explanation.

"Umm…" he murmurs glumly. "Actually, I ran into her in the hallway, and, um, she was feeling terrible, so I suggested that she take the afternoon off. I mean, if it’s cleaning up the gym or keeping score,  _we_ can take turns doing that for one day, right?”

"Is she sick?" Hinata asks, looking concerned. The one time Yachi had gotten a cold, she had tried to play it off as something very minor to keep from burdening the team, but then her fever had overheated and she’d passed out right near the end of practice.

"Ah, no. Actually…" He shuffles on the spot, wondering whether it’s okay to tell the others, but then decides Yachi probably wouldn’t have told  _him_ if she’d wanted to keep it a secret. Besides, the team would find out eventually. “Well, her results for her entrance exam came back, and she… didn’t make it into her first-choice university.”

Even Kageyama almost falters at the news, face crumpling in shock. Yachi was one of the most brilliant students he knew, especially since she had tutored both him and Hinata through most of their high school life. How could  _she_ have failed an exam?

Hinata puts his thoughts into words. “ _Yachi_ failed?” he exclaims in disbelief, hopping on the spot.  _"How_ is that possible!”

Yamaguchi looks regretful as he explains. “She was careless and she accidentally skipped a number on her answer sheet. All her answers after that were off by one question.”

 _"Hey,_ I’ve done the same thing before!” Hinata remembers, thinking of the first time Yachi had ever tutored him. He almost even perks up a little bit, laughing at the coincidence.

Kageyama flicks the back of his head, abruptly putting an end to his good mood. “Idiot,” he snaps. “Don’t compare your insignificant test grade to her entrance exam. Your levels are  _vastly_ different.”

Hinata stamps his foot and sticks out his tongue at him. “I  _wasn’t_ comparing, stupid Kageyama! I was  _just_ pointing out the coincidence. And don’t talk all high and mighty when you’re just as stupid as I am!”

The setter grits his teeth but the ace glares right back, and there are practically sparks flying off their skin as precursors to a brewing fight. But Tsukishima suddenly clicks his tongue against his cheek, drawing their attention.

"Get back to practice," he drawls, looking away from their stand-off with a look of pure distaste. "Since you two  _clearly_ have so much free time, I guess that means you’re volunteering yourselves to be the first scorekeepers,  _hm?”_

Both instantly make noises of indignation, but they can’t argue with their captain’s orders, no matter how badly they might want to. Still, Hinata makes a horrid face at his back and protests, “We were just feeling sorry for poor Yachi, heartless Tsukishima!”

The blond hums vaguely but doesn’t bother with a proper response, only incensing them further, before stalking off to stand on the court for their practice match. Yamaguchi looks at them apologetically but still trails after his childhood friend, leaving the two volleyball nuts to reluctantly handle the scoreboard.

"He could at least  _act_  like he misses Yachi,” Hinata grumbles out the side of his mouth. “She’s perfectly nice to him even when he’s this mean all the time.”

Kageyama grunts in agreement just as Coach Ukai blows the whistle and the practice match begins. Most of the players are in top shape, a testament to the hours of practice they’d put in to prepare for the Spring High, and the match turns close and intense so quickly that the boys lose themselves in the sport.

Still, they can all feel that practice just isn’t the same without their manager.

.

Yachi arrives at school the next morning with a dejected frown on her face, her head hanging low and her hands squeezing the life out of her backpack straps. She’d tried so hard to leave home that morning with a smile on her face, especially since her mother had assured her that one failed exam did not mean the end of the world, but her mood had predictably sunk again during her walk to school. And on top of that, she feels  _terrible_  for skipping volleyball practice for the first time yesterday, even if Yamaguchi had assured her no one would mind.

Her friends offer her pitying looks and sympathetic pats on the back when she arrives at her desk, and she looks at them all in gratitude. They’d all come over yesterday to help make her feel better, and she knows she’s lucky to have them as friends. But still, having friends wouldn’t help her when she needed to sell her organs on the black market to buy groceries for the week.

With a little sigh, she plops down in her seat.

No sooner has she done so when the door to their classroom  _slams_  open, and a familiar head of bright, orange hair clouds her vision even before she’s basically pounced on.

 _"Yachi!"_  Hinata exclaims, his booming voice catching everyone’s attention. His eyes, however, are on her alone as he pulls at his hair in worry, accidentally crumpling up the papers in his hand.

"H-Hinata?" she stammers, eyes widening as she takes in his frazzled state. "What’s wrong?"

"Yachi, it’s _terrible,”_  he groans, dragging a chair over to share her desk. His mouth falls open in clear distress. “I heard there’s going to be a pop quiz in English today, and you  _know_  I’m no good at that! Yachi,  _help me!”_

Though taken aback by the sudden request, she still vigorously nods her head. “O-Of course. Why don’t you show me what’s giving you the most trouble?”

With a radiant, relieved grin, he immediately spreads his papers over her desk and starts pointing out all the problems that gave him pause. “This one. And this one. Oh, and this one, too. I can’t even  _read this_  word. And this, this, and this.”

Pretty soon he’s basically pointed out every question in the list of problems, and after collecting her spinning thoughts, Yachi doesn’t waste a moment clicking a pen and getting to work helping out the ace of her team. This is old news when it comes to Hinata, anyway.

"Well, this one," she explains patiently, and he hangs on to every word, "is simple if you just read the passage carefully."

"Wow, Yachi!" he exclaims once she’s finished with the first problem. Eyes wide and brimming with awe, he beams at her with his sun-like smile. "I get it now! You’re  _so_ smart!”

She tucks a lock of hair behind her ear and shyly ducks her head. “Oh, th-thanks. Should we… move on to the next one?” Without waiting for a response, she hastily begins to explain the next question as well, carefully toning down the difficult wording so Hinata would understand.

And after that one, too, Hinata stares at her with admiration written clearly on his face and cries, “You’re the  _best_  teacher, Yachi! I wish  _my_  teacher taught like you do.”

Yachi is quite confused and flustered and feels like she can’t  _breathe_  when the compliments keep coming.

"So smart!"

"I wish I was as smart as you!"

"There’s  _no_  question that can stump you, Yachi!”

When they make it to the end of the list, just in time for the first bell of the day to ring, he hops to his feet, clutches his papers to his chest, and smiles a grin so wide and bright that it could have cracked his face in two. “You’re the smartest person I know, Yachi!” he declares. “You’re probably the smartest person in the whole  _school_. Probably smarter than  _Tsukishima.”_

He skips out of the classroom and leaves a very rattled Yachi to flounder at her desk.

.

In between two of her morning classes, as she’s rushing to the locker room to change for PE, she finds her path blocked by Kageyama — or rather, by the piece of wood he thrusts into her face, all the while huffily staring at the wall.

Realizing it’s meant for her, she accepts it slowly and turns it over in her hand, studying the word engraved into one side. “Um… what’s this?”

"…Charm," he grumbles, scuffing his shoe against the floor. "I went to the sh — I mean, I just  _happened_  to pass by the shrine on my way to school, and I heard this is a good charm for grades.” His shoulders tense, and he shoves his hands into his pockets and mumbles, “Y-You know, for any future tests you  _might_ have to take…”

She watches his face twist into an array of interesting expressions, clearly uncomfortable in this situation, and while she’s shocked and  _extremely_  touched herself, she cocks her head in question. “Eh?” she muses, clutching the charm to her chest. “Kageyama-kun, I didn’t know you lived near a shrine?”

His ears instantly pink, and with an expression reminiscent of a deer caught in headlights, he abruptly spins around and marches down the hall without another word.

.

Yachi accidentally bumps into Tsukishima during the lunch break, while returning from the vending machines in the courtyard with a juice box in hand. She actually runs right into him, too preoccupied with her straw to properly watch her step, and then squeaks when she meets his gaze.

"G-g-gosh, I’m s-sorry!"

He pushes his glasses farther up the bridge of his nose and turns his head away when she drops into a hasty bow, sighing, “…It’s fine.”

Still feeling heat on her cheeks, she curls her arms into her chest and looks past him, and that’s when she realizes that they’re right outside of her classroom. “Tsukishima-kun, were you in my class?” she blurts out in surprise. “I didn’t know you knew anyone from there?”

He narrows his eyes down at her, his lips pursed as if he’s pondering whether he should bother explaining, before he sighs again. “It was nothing.”

He side-steps around her and wanders off in the direction from which she had come, back to his own class. Yachi allows herself to stand there in a daze for a moment, thinking about his peculiar behavior, before she startles and realizes the break would end soon if she doesn’t hurry and eat her lunch.

When she walks into the classroom, however, she’s immediately surrounded by her extremely giggly friends, all of whom seem to be having trouble getting a proper sentence out around their squealing.

"Wh-what?" she asks, instantly panicky and on alert.

"A blond boy came into our class just now," they finally manage to tell her, still failing at smothering their giggles behind their hands as their cheeks flush red. "He left something on your desk!"

Her eyes rounding, Yachi instantly rushes to her desk to find that it’s true; there’s a small, cardboard box resting innocently on the surface, unopened and waiting for her. She tentatively pulls apart the top, and inside she finds a slice of strawberry shortcake from the school canteen.

.

Yamaguchi also pops his head into her class, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck as he does so. It’s the end of the day and Yachi has day duty to attend to before practice; she wants to be  _extra_ thorough, because yesterday a friend had taken over in her place to help her feel better about her entrance exam.

"Oh, Yamaguchi-kun," she greets him, flushing slightly because he’d caught her with the blackboard eraser in hand, hopping on the spot to reach the formulas written at the very top of the board. "I’m sorry, but I think I’ll be a little late to practice? B-But I’ll hurry over once I’m finished, I promise!"

He averts his eyes, tensing under her gaze. “Well, actually, I-I thought you might like some help?” She does a double take at the unexpected offer, and he quickly hurries to add, “B-Because everyone missed… W-Well, it wouldn’t be good to be late to practice, right? And, um, you were looking like you were having trouble reaching? And I’m tall enough to reach in your place!”

"O-Oh, no, I-I could’t possibly pass this off to you, Yamaguchi-kun," she instantly denies, furiously shaking her head. "And you were so nice to me yesterday, too."

"It’s no trouble!" he insists, and before she can protest again, he crosses the room and takes the eraser from her hand, easily reaching the spot she’d been struggling to erase. He smiles in an appeasing manner. "See? And it’ll be faster with two people, won’t it?"

After a bout of fidgeting where she stands, nervously wondering whether this is really okay, she finally nods her head. “Okay… Then, um, I’ll take care of some of the other duties?”

He nods his head encouragingly, clearing the board in a single swipe as she runs off. But his offers of help don’t stop there.

"Here, I’ll carry that, Yachi-san," he says as he takes the trash bag from her hands. "It’ll be too heavy for you, I think."

"Oh!  _I’ll_  get that,” he offers, and takes the watering can from her hand before she can run to the taps outside and bring back water for the class plants. “The taps are just so far, y-you know?”

"I-I wouldn’t want you to choke or anything," he says as he claps the blackboard erasers in her place, and as he takes the broom off her hands, he laughs, "I just  _really_ love cleaning! So, please, Yachi-san, may I?”

They finish the day duty in record time, and Yachi is left trying to remember what she’d done to help at all.

.

It’s only when she walks into practice and sees all the friendly faces of the team members that Yachi realizes, with all the confusion of the day and the butterflies in her stomach, she’s been too preoccupied to think of her entrance exam at all.

As she dazedly takes out the club notebook and readies a pen in her hand, Takeda-sensei sidles up next to her and smiles warmly. “You know,” he muses, his hands tucked behind his back, “I told this to Hinata-kun and Kageyama-kun once, too. That defeat is not a sign of weakness. Rather, defeat is a trial of whether you can stand up and walk again after falling on your knees.” His smiles widens. “It seems to me the boys agree that you’ll pass this trial with flying colors, hm?”

He wanders off as quickly as he had come, leaving her to her spinning thoughts. And Yachi thinks of her girl friends going out of their way to lift her spirits, and of her mother telling her this was not the end of the world, and of hearing over and over again that she was smart, and of her teammates taking a step out of their comfort zones to pull her back onto her feet. They believed in her, and she owes it to them to believe in herself.

Fists clenching in determination, Yachi promises herself right then, that she would pass this trial with flying colors, and that she would ace the next exam that came her way.


End file.
